NEWBERRY, S.C. – The Coker College men's basketball team improved to 3-2 on the season with an 85-82 win over Paine College on day two (Nov. 19) of the Newberry Classic.

A slow-moving opening six minutes left the matchup tied at 9-9 with 14 minutes left in the opening half. A brief 6-0 run by Paine pushed the Lions ahead 15-9 with 12:30 left. The Cobras fought their way back in, as a JaQuez Motley made three gave Coker the 22-21 advantage with under nine minutes left. Coker kept the momentum, propelling ahead 37-28 with three minutes left in the opening half. Paine closed the half on a 12-3 run to leave the matchup tied at 40 going into the half.

Neither side could pull away in the opening six minutes, however a Coker 6-0 gave the Cobras a 58-52 lead with 11:30 left. Paine rattled off a 12-2 run over the next three minutes, taking a 64-60 lead with under nine minutes left. Coker wouldn't cut into the lead until the 3:44 mark until a DeShaun Leftwich three tied the game up at 77-77. A made lay in by Paine with 57 seconds left tied the game back up at 82. An offensive rebound by Coker with 34 seconds left gave the Cobras a second opportunity to reclaim the advantage. Coker called a timeout with 22 seconds, giving them one last chance to finish the game in regulation. With time running down on both the shot and game clock, Motley pulled up from behind-the-arc and buried a three with four seconds left. Coker prevented Paine from getting off a last second shot and secured the 85-82 win.

Five Cobras scored in double figures, led by Motley's 21 points. Jake Barrett, Miguel Priest, Roman Hall and Nathan Lemke all finished with 10 points. Lemke pulled down 10 rebounds, while Priest finished with eight rebounds.

The Cobras will be back in action on Tuesday (Nov. 22) when they take on Catawba in the home and SAC opener. Opening tip is set for 8 p.m.