Nov. 29, 2011

Final Stats

PEMBROKE, N.C. -- Shahmel Brackett broke the Fayetteville State Broncos' hearts with 18 seconds remaining in the game in the teams' first meeting.

He didn't bother waiting in the rematch.

Brackett, who beat Fayetteville State with a late 3-pointer on Nov. 15, scored 12 of the Braves' first 17 points in leading Pembroke to a 107-66 victory over the Broncos on Tuesday night.

Brackett finished with a game-high 22 points, but it was his hot start that fueled a breakout performance by the Braves (4-3). Brackett, who finished the game shooting 9-of-11 from the floor, buried two 3-pointers in the first 2 minutes of the game and had 12 points by the 15:17 mark of the first half as Pembroke built a 17-7 lead in the early going.

The Braves were red hot in the first half, hitting seven of their first 10 3-point field goal attempts. They were shooting 76 percent from the field when they took their largest lead of the half, 38-19, with 7:21 to go in the opening period.

The Broncos (1-3), who have lost three straight, tried to rally, getting back-to-back 3-pointers from Jarmel Baxter (Sr., Davidson, N.C.) to spark an 8-0 run and bring Fayetteville State within 10, 40-30, with 2:30 left in the half. But Pembroke managed to lead 46-32 at the break.

Pembroke stayed hot throughout the second half, finishing the game shooting 66 percent from the field for the game. The Braves were still over 71 percent shooting until the 6-minute mark of the second half.

Tyrrel Tate (So., Raleigh, N.C.) led the Broncos with 12 points while DominQue Johnson (Sr., Raleigh, N.C.) added 10 points.

Marcus Heath added 18 points while Nathan Priest and George Blakeney added 12 each for Pembroke. Ben Jacobs chipped in 10 points.

Fayetteville State travels to play St. Andrews at 7 p.m. on Saturday.