Pirates notch road win against Cougars

COLUMBUS, Ga. — Columbus State University (CSU) struggled offensively from the outset on Feb. 13 at the Lumpkin Center and suffered a second-consecutive home loss as AASU took a 72-56 Peach Belt Conference win.

AASU out-scored the Cougars 12-2 over the remainder of the half to take a 31-17 lead into the intermission.

In the second half, CSU improved its shooting to 40 percent, but the Pirates also improved, shooting 43 percent. AASU put the game away at the free-throw line, however, hitting 18 of 25 foul shots. CSU cut the margin to 11 points twice early in the period, and then got it to 12 points with 5:32 left in the game on a Brandon Bland free-throw, but AASU answered with a Gabriel Robinson 3-pointer on the ensuing possession and never looked back.

Robinson led the Pirates with 16 points on the day as AASU put five players in double digits. Chris Vanlandingham and Patrick Shokpeka each tallied 13 points, while Keron McKenzie came off the bench to score 12, and Pruett added 11. Marquise Duvall led the Pirates in rebounding with 11 as the team held a 41-34 advantage in that category.

Blake Zamudio and Brandon Bland each came off the bench to score 13 points and lead the Cougars offensively. Chris Telesford posted another double-double with 10 points and 13 rebounds, but was just 5-13 from the field on the day. Bryant Thomas added nine points. The Cougars were just 21-62 from the floor for 34 percent in the game.