Cobras Roll Past Mars Hill in SAC Action

HARTSVILLE, S.C. - The Coker College men's basketball team defeated Mars Hill 98-85 in a South Atlantic Conference matchup on Saturday (Dec. 16) evening. 

The Cobras were led by Donte Samuels, who recorded a double-double with 23 points and 14 rebounds. Jake Barrett added 21 points and five rebounds, and Larry Cooper notched a double-double off the bench with 14 points and 12 rebounds. 

The Cobras jumped out to an early 7-2 lead, but Mars Hill responded with an 11-2 run to take the lead. The teams battled back and forth throughout the first half before Coker used a 10-3 run to extend their advantage to 36-26 with 4:31 remaining in the half.  The Lions battled back again though, cutting the lead to just 45-41 at halftime. 

The Cobras answered in the second half and pushed their lead back to double digits after Cooper tipped in a basket to make the score 60-49.  The Lions struggled to recover from that point onward. 

Coker's defense forced a pair steals and Cooper blocked one of Mars Hill's shots, leading to a three-pointer from Marquis Green and a score of 75-57. 

Coker used their depth and defensive pressure to maintain the lead and close out the game with the victory.  The Cobras forced 20 turnovers on the night, and their bench outscored Mars Hill's bench 28-15. 

The Cobras will be back in action on Monday (Dec. 18) when they host the second-ranked Queens Royals in a South Atlantic Conference game at 8 p.m. in the DeLoach Center.

McDonald's Player of the Game - Donte Samuels