GREENSBORO, N.C. – The UNCG men's basketball team held a nine-point advantage 3:36 remaining but East Tennessee State closed the game on a 15-3 run as the Spartans suffered a heart-breaking 68-65 loss to the Buccaneers in Southern Conference action on campus at Fleming Gymnasium.

The loss drops the Spartans to 5-6 in league play while ETSU improves to 8-3 in conference and moves into second place. UNCG returns to action in less than 48 hours as it concludes its stretch of three games in five days when the Spartans battle Furman Monday night at 7 p.m. The game will be televised on the American Sports Network.

The back-and-forth contest saw the Spartans connect on 41.7 percent (20-of-48) from the field and 45.5 percent (10-of-22) from 3-point land in the loss. UNCG was 15-of-20 from the free throw line as well but committed 12 turnovers, including three in the final 1:41 of the game as ETSU went into a full court press.

Freshman guard Francis Alonso (Malaga, Spain/Cushing Academy) led three Spartans in double figures with 16 points as he finished 10-of-12 from the free throw line. Classmate Demetrius Troy (Raleigh, N.C./Word of God) came off the bench to tie his career-high with 14 points as he was 5-of-9 from the field, including four 3-pointers. Senior forward Kayel Locke (Baltimore, Md./McDonogh) added 13 points and six rebounds in 37 minutes of play.

The Buccaneers (15-9, 8-3 SoCon) connected on 50 percent (26-of-52) from the field and hit 55.6 percent (10-of-18) from 3-point land in the victory. Deuce Bello led the Bucs with 16 points off the bench, including 10 of the final 15 points for the Buccaneers in the final 3:36 of the game. Bello hit 2-of-2 from 3-point land despite entering the game shooting just 28.3 percent from distance.

ETSU opened the game staked itself to a 16-9 run with eight straight points, including a banked in 3-pointer from leading scorer Ge'Lawn Guyn. The Spartans answered back with seven straight points, including the first 3-pointer of the night for Troy to pull within three at 23-20. The see-saw affair had ETSU score six straight to take a nine-point lead before the Spartans rallied again to end the half trailing ETSU by just 33-30 as Troy hit back-to-back 3-pointers in the final 1:20 of the first half.

UNCG shot just 36 percent (9-of-25) from the field in the first half but hit 5-of-10 (50%) from the 3-point line while also hitting 7-of-9 (77.8%). ETSU connected on 52 percent (13-of-25) from the field and hit 62.5 percent (5-of-8) from distance in the opening 20 minutes.

The Bucs extended their lead to 39-33 early in the second half but UNCG responded with a 19-3 run to take a 51-42 lead with 9:39 remaining in the game. Troy started the run with a 3-pointer before junior guard Diante Baldwin (Greensboro, N.C./High Point Christian) scored five points in a 30 seconds stretch to give the Spartans the lead at 40-39.

UNCG kept attacking and senior Asad Lamot (Mebane, N.C./Eastern Alamance) hit a 3-pointer before Locke scored five straight, including a 3-pointer from deep. Junior center R.J. White (Frisco, Texas/Frisco) gave the Spartans a 9-point lead as he scored in the paint with just under 10 minutes left in the game.

After ETSU rallied to pull within one at 51-50, the Spartans again extended their lead to nine at 62-53 with an 11-3 run with 3:36 remaining. Alonso scored five straight in the run before Locke and White scored on consecutive possessions for the nine-point lead.

ETSU started their comeback with a basket by Isaac Banks before Bello scored five straight to narrow the gap to 62-60. Alonso hit a pair of free throws for the 64-60 lead but Bello again hit a 3-pointer to narrow the gap to one at 64-63. Alonso hit one of two free throws on the ensuing possession but Guyn came through with a pivotal play, converted a 3-point play with 40.1 seconds remaining for a 66-65 lead.

The Spartans were forced into a turnover against the ETSU press and Bello corralled an offensive rebound for a put back dunk for a 68-65 lead with 13.8 seconds remaining. The Spartans had one final look as time expired but Locke's 3-pointer was just short of the rim sealing the ETSU victory.

White finished the game with just six points on only five field goal attempts but added 11 rebounds and three blocked shots. Baldwin finished with seven points, seven rebounds and six assists in the loss.

The Spartans return to action in less than 48 hours as they travel to Greenville, S.C., to take on Furman. Game time is set for 7 p.m. and will be televised on the American Sports Network.

-UNCG-