Greenville, N.C. – The Cobra men nearly pulled off their second division I upset in two years, but came up just short falling to the East Carolina Pirates 69-63 in men’s collegiate basketball on Saturday night. The loss is Coker’s third straight, dropping their record to 3-4 overall, while ECU improves to 4-5 overall.

Vatrick Thompson (Columbia, S.C.) led the Coker offensive attack with 18 points, while Mason Ambler (Atlanta, Ga.) had his sixth double-double of the season with 15 points and 11 rebounds. Liam Kyle (Cleveland, Ohio) and Delonte Doles (Roswell, Ga.) chipped in eight points apiece, with Kyle pulling down four boards.

The Pirates were led by Brock Young and Jamar Abrams with 16 points each, with Young’s points all coming in the second half. Jontae Sherrod had 11 points and Chad Wynn had eight points and eight rebounds.

Coker jumped out to an early six point lead in the opening minutes, but the Pirates came from behind and never looked back.  The Cobras managed to keep things close going into the half down just 32-27, but another rough night of shooting made things difficult for the Coker down the stretch.

Coker returns to action on Dec. 14 when they travel to Wingate University for a 7:00 p.m. tip-off.