GREENEVILLE, Tenn. --- Tusculum College made 10 consecutive field-goal attempts during a first-half run that propelled the Pioneers to an 87-60 victory over Belmont Abbey College in non-conference men's basketball action Friday night at Pioneer Arena.

Four players scored in double figures for the Pioneers (6-5), led by a career-high 18 points from Zach Hartle and 16 points and 10 assists from Kendall Patterson. Caleb Hodnett matched his season best with 12 points off the bench, while Keaton Dotson also set a career high with 11 points.

Tusculum's Cory Fagan finished with nine points, but set a program record by making a three-pointer in his 27th consecutive game, breaking the mark of 26 set by Pat Compton during the 2000-01 season. As a team, Tusculum matched its season high with 15 three-pointers while shooting 57.7 percent (15-for-26) from beyond the arc and 53.7 percent (29-for-54) overall from the field. Fagan also equaled his career high with six assists in the win.

Drexler Clark led the Crusaders (5-6) with 20 points and five assists, and was joined in double figures by Jacob Wilson who had 12 points to go with four rebounds and four assists. Belmont Abbey, which shot 46.7 percent and went 26-for-32 from the foul line in a 94-84 home win over Tusculum on Nov. 16, connected on just 41.8 percent from the floor (23-for-55) and was just 7-for-11 at the stripe as a team.

Hartle finished 7-for-9 from the field and matched his career high with four three-pointers on five attempts while playing a season-high 26 minutes in his first career start. Patterson also canned four threes and came within one assist of matching his career high of 11 set on Dec. 7 at King. As a team, Tusculum had 25 assists on their 29 field goals and matched its season low with 10 turnovers in the victory.

Tusculum connected on 13 of its first 15 shots from the field, including 5-for-6 from three-point range, to jump to a 32-14 lead midway through the first half. A tip-in by Chase Mounce started the run of 10 consecutive made baskets by the Pioneers, which included three-pointers from Fagan, Hartle and Trey Blevins, the latter capping the surge with 10:04 remaining in the half.

Three-pointers by Hodnett and Patterson were combined by a Pioneer defensive effort that kept the Crusaders without a point for the final 3:43 of the half, including six missed shots in a row over the final three minutes. Tusculum led 48-26 at the half as Hartle led all players with 10 points on 4-for-4 shooting and Patterson had six points and six assists.

Overall, Tusculum shot 60.7 percent (17-for-28) from the field in the first half, and went 9-for-13 from three-point range. Meanwhile, Belmont Abbey finished the half at 36.7 percent (11-for-30) from the floor and did not attempt a foul shot while being outrebounded 21-8 by the Pioneers.

Belmont Abbey would get no closer than 17 points in the second half as back-to-back three-pointers from Patterson pushed the Tusculum lead to 67-42 with 8:51 remaining. Three-pointers by Blevins and Hartle gave Tusculum its largest lead at 81-53 with 3:17 remaining, while the Pioneer defense limited the Crusaders to one field goal in the final three minutes.

Blevins, who played a season-high 15 minutes off the bench for the Pioneers, made his first three attempts from three-point range and finished with nine points and three assists. Brandon Dansoh matched his season high for the Pioneers with five points and four rebounds, while Hodnett's 12 points came on 5-for-10 shooting and equaled his season best set on Nov. 22 at Brevard.

Tusculum outrebounded Belmont Abbey 32-30 in the game, with Mounce grabbing a team-high six boards for the Pioneers. Ben Ferguson led all players with seven rebounds for the Crusaders, and added nine points on 3-for-9 shooting from beyond the arc. The Pioneers forced the Crusaders into 13 turnovers, with 12 of them coming on steals. Patterson had three thefts for the Pioneers and Vincent Brown matched his career high with three swipes as Tusculum turned the 13 Belmont Abbey turnovers into 16 points.

Led by Hodnett and Blevins, the Pioneer bench outscored the Crusader reserves by a 29-9 margin. Tusculum also had a 17-7 advantage in fast-break points while limiting Belmont Abbey to just three points off its 10 turnovers.

The Pioneers will be on the road for the next three games as they resume their South Atlantic Conference schedule on Wednesday, Jan. 4 at Carson-Newman for a renewal of their rivalry with the Eagles.