PEMBROKE, N.C. – Coker senior guard Errick Bethel scored a game-high 28 points with four assists and three steals in the Cobra men's basketball team's 69-61 loss to the nationally ranked No. 21 UNC Pembroke Braves on Wednesday (Dec. 31) afternoon.
Bethel's 28 points came off the bench, as he hit 8-of-11 (72.7 percent) three-pointers and shot 10-for-18 (55.5 percent) for the game. Also scoring in double figures for the Cobras was junior guard Trey Marshall with 10 points and three steals. Junior forward Jalen Watson led the Cobras on the glass with nine rebounds.
The Braves jumped out to an early 17-6 lead in the first half, however, the Cobras closed the gap to just two points, 23-21, thanks to five consecutive three-pointers from Bethel with just under seven minutes left in the first half. The score remained close through rest of the half with the Braves taking a narrow 31-28 lead into the locker room.
Pembroke used solid defense and hot shooting in the second half to build as much as a 14-point lead. The Cobras would not go away quietly, scoring 11 points in the final three minutes for a 69-61 final.
The Cobras will return to action for their first game of 2015 on Saturday (Jan. 3), when they play host to Brevard College in a South Atlantic Conference game at 4 p.m. at Coker's DeLoach Center.