Brandon McLean recorded his second straight double-double in Wednesday's loss at Piedmont. McLean finished with 17 points and 11 rebounds.
Brandon McLean recorded his second straight double-double in Wednesday's loss at Piedmont. McLean finished with 17 points and 11 rebounds.

Hawks fall to Piedmont in USA South opener

DEMOREST, Ga. – The Huntingdon men's basketball team fell in its conference opener with an 82-77 loss to Piedmont College on Wednesday.

The Hawks led for almost all of the first 36 minutes of the game. Huntingdon built a 16-point lead in the first half, led 41-32 at halftime and held a 69-60 lead with 5:56 to play in the game.

From there, the momentum shifted to the Lions. Piedmont outscored the Hawks 22-8 in the final 5:44. The Lions took a 70-69 lead with 3:59 remaining and took the lead for good with 2:55 to play.

Trailing 76-72, Huntingdon's Isaiah King made a layup to cut Piedmont's lead to two points with 28 seconds left. But the Lions hit six free throws in the final 18 seconds to close out the game.

Three Hawks finished with 17 points. Brandon McLean turned in his second straight double-double with 17 points and 11 rebounds. T.C. Elmore and Kyante Pines each finished with 17 points and five rebounds.  King added nine points.

                         

Records: Huntingdon (5-2, 0-1 USA South); Piedmont (3-4, 2-1 USA South)

Quick Facts: Huntingdon and Piedmont combined to hit 25 3-pointers in the game. Huntingdon had a season-high 10 3-pointers and Piedmont sank 15 3-pointers … Huntingdon had a season-low 40 rebounds, but outrebounded its opponent for the fifth time in seven games

Coming Up: Huntingdon continues conference play this weekend. The Hawks host Maryville (4-3, 1-0 USA South) on Saturday at 2 p.m.