HARTSVILLE, S.C. --- Jake Barrett scored 21 points, including 17 in the second half in Coker's 104-93 South Atlantic Conference win over Tusculum Saturday afternoon at the DeLoach Center.
Barrett was one of five Cobras to score in double figures as Coker (11-13, 8-8 SAC) records its third consecutive win and sweeps the season series with the Pioneers (6-17, 4-12 SAC).
Barrett went 8-of-15 from the floor and 5-of-6 from the free throw line while dishing out five assists. Donte Samuels tallied a double-double with 20 points and 10 rebounds, while Khalil Halls contributed 14 points including four 3-pointers. Larry Cooper and LaDarius Williams accounted for 13 points each in the win.
Tusculum was led in scoring by Donovan Donaldson who finished with 21 points and dished out five assists off the bench. Dashaunte Smith scored 17 points for a second straight game, Peyton Woods added 11 and Hunter Parrish established a season-high with 10 points and hauled in a team-best eight rebounds. Zailan Peeler finished with nine points, while Malik Tyree contributed eight markers in the loss.
It was a game of runs as the score was tied nine times to go along with eight lead changes including six alone in the final 20 minutes.
The Cobras jumped out to an 18-10 lead to start the game following back-to-back triples from Halls and Samuels. Coker pushed its advantage to nine points on three occasions in the first half, including 26-17 after a Cooper bucket at the 10:14 mark of the period.
Tusculum shook off the sluggish start with a 20-8 run over a 5:28 span with eight points from Donaldson, including six in a row at the end of the spurt as TC led 37-34 with 4:46 left before halftime.
With Tusculum leading 39-36, the Cobras scored seven straight including four from Marquis Green as Coker led 43-39 with 1:39 to go in the period. Smith scored four in a row to tie the game before Dakota Jennings converted a layup as the Cobras led 45-43 at the intermission.
Neither team had a lead of more than two points in the opening five minutes of the second period. Tusculum took a 53-51 lead on an offensive rebound a put-back by Jackie Davis. But a 7-0 run by Coker gave the hosts a 58-53 advantage following a Demarco Jackson three-point play with 14:06 left in the contest.
Tusculum responded with an 11-5 run to retake the lead at 64-63 as Woods and Tyree each knocked down a 3-pointer for the Pioneers.
Trailing by one at 66-65, Coker followed with five unanswered points on a Halls' trey and a layup from Barrett as Coker led 70-66 with nine minutes to go.
The Pioneers tied the game for a ninth time as Smith drained a three-pointer to even the contest at 74-74, but the Cobras struck back with five in a row on a Barrett three-point play and a Williams' basket to lead 79-74 at the 6:16 mark of the half.
Peeler connected on a triple to pull TC within a pair (79-77), but Samuels followed with an offensive board and basket to give Coker an 81-77 lead with 5:14 remaining. Brandon Mitchell's dunk cut the deficit to 81-79. But the Cobras scored eighth straight including a Williams basket and a pair of treys from Halls as Coker led 89-79 with four minutes left.
Woods gave TC some hope with his two triples in a 15-second span as TC trailed 93-87 with 2:35 to go.
Coker pushed the game out of reach with a 7-1 spurt to take its largest lead of the afternoon at 100-88 following a tip-in bucket from Barrett with a minute left.
The Cobras finished the game shooting 52.9 percent from the floor, including a sizzling 21-of-34 in the second half (61.8%). Coker also went 24-of-31 at the free throw stripe along with 14-of-17 in the final 20 minutes. The Cobras edged TC in rebounding 39-37 as both teams finished with 15 offensive rebounds. Coker forced 19 turnovers resulting into 24 points for the home team.
Tusculum went 17-of-20 at the free throw line (85%) and connected on a dozen 3-pointers.
The Pioneers return to action on Wednesday when they travel to rival Carson-Newman for an 8 p.m. contest at Holt Fieldhouse. C-N edged the Pioneers 91-86 in last month's meeting in Greeneville.
