TIGERVILLE, S.C. – The Coker College men's basketball team picked up its first win of the season on Saturday (Nov. 12), taking down the Erskine College Flying Fleet by a score of 78-73. The win was also the first collegiate win in first-year coach Aric Samuel's career.

A low-scoring opening eight minutes to begin the contest left the Cobras with a 14-6 lead. The Flying Fleet fought their way back into the contest over the next eight minutes, taking a 29-26 lead with four and half minutes left in the opening half. Back-to-back JaQuez Motley made threes in a 40-second span propelled the Cobras ahead 38-34 with 1:38 left in the opening half. The two sides traded baskets to close out the half, leaving Coker with a 41-37 lead heading into the locker rooms.

A brief 5-0 run out of the gates pushed Coker ahead 46-37 to start the second half. The next six minutes were all Erskine, outscoring Coker 15-4 and taking a 52-50 lead with 11:40 left in the matchup. Neither team could take more than five-point lead until the 5:12 mark, when a Miguel Priest made layup left the Cobras with a 67-62 advantage. The Navy and Gold would push the lead to seven, but an Erskine 7-0 response tied the game up at 69 with 2:12 to go. Made baskets by Roman Hall and Jake Barrett sent the Cobras on a 5-0 run and a 74-69 lead. Coker would maintain the five-point advantage down the stretch, securing the 78-73 win.

Barrett and Hall each scored 19 points. Barrett also pulled down 12 rebounds, eight of which were offensive rebounds. Stefan Osborne and Miguel Priest each scored nine points off the bench, Priest added five rebounds and four steals to his stat line as well. Motley also came off the bench, scoring eight points and dishing out four assists.

The Cobras will be back in action on Wednesday (Nov. 16), when they travel to Limestone College to take on the Saints. Opening tip is set for 7:30 p.m.