On December 2, Francis Marion University (FMU) Men’s basketball team fell short to Georgia College with a final score of 60-71.

            The first points on the board were scored by FMU’s Mykel Harris, just 20 seconds into the game. Over the next minute, Georgia College made several attempts to score. After nearly a minute, Georgia College was able to tie the score at 2-2 when Terrell Harris made a layup. 

            With both FMU and Georgia College wanting to score, the points were accumulated in a back and forth motion for the next minute of the game. After Georgia College made their first basket, FMU’s Travonte Dixon broke the tie with a 3-point jump shot. Georgia College would score again, followed by FMU at 18:17 when Dustin Jones made a 3-point jump shot giving FMU a small lead.

            The scoreboard currently read 8-4, but changed quickly as Georgia College scored again. With only a 2 point gap, Georgia College was granted a free throw shot due to a foul on FMU’s Mykel Harris. Georgia College’s Terrell Harris made one shot bringing the score to 7-8. Going into the fourth minute of the game, Evrik Gary dunked the ball, causing a slight momentum shift for the Patriots. The next minute was a display of defensive skills until Clark Major dunked as well, widening the score gap and bringing the total to 12-7.

            For the next two minutes, both FMU and Georgia College were able to make several free throw shots due to fouls. At the 13-minute mark, Georgia College took their first lead in the game with a score of 15-16. This did not last long as Dustin Jones made a 3-point shot at 12:55, bringing FMU back ahead by 1 point.

Shots made by Robert Carpenter, Trevonte Dixon, Mykel Harris and Tyler Deihl kept the Patriots in the lead for the remainder of the first half with a score of 34-32.

Going into the second half with a close score, Georgia College was the first to put points on the board, tying the game within the first 20 seconds. Georgia College would score again within the next 40 seconds, picking up the lead. Once again, the lead was short lived as Trevonte Dixon made a jump shot tying the game at 36-36.

Within the second minute of the half, Georgia College’s Royal Thomas made a basket putting them ahead by two points. This would be the beginning of the lead that Georgia College would keep for the remainder of the game.

Francis Marion would continue to score, keeping the gap minimal for much of the second half. Both Evrik Gary and Trevonte Dixon would make free throw shots that shortened the gap that Georgia College had put in place, but it was not enough. By the time the buzzer went off ending the second half, the score was 60-71.

Since the game on December 2, the men’s team has played several away games and one at home. Their standings overall are 4-6 with 1-3 for conference games.