DAHLONEGA, Ga. -- With only seven players available, Georgia Southwestern State University men's basketball head coach Aaron Coombs had to rely on his starting five to cover 193 of the 200 minutes on the floor Wednesday night in the Convocation Center against the University of North Georgia. GSW was within four points of the the Nighthawks with 3:11 to play, but ran out of gas down the stretch to suffer a 90-77 loss in the Peach Belt Conference matchup.

GSW has lost eight straight road games and fell to 8-11 overall and 3-10 in the Peach Belt. North Georgia has won three of its last four games to improve to 11-10 overall and 6-7 in the PBC. 

How It Happened: GSW held the lead for 13.5 percent of the game with the largest margin coming at 18-13 with 13:35 remaining in the first half. Soloman Thomas knocked down a 3-pointer with 10:11 to go until the break to give the Hurricanes their final lead of the night, 28-26. North Georgia answered with a 15-4 run over the ensuing six minutes and 46 seconds and eventually took a 43-36 advantage into halftime.

Jamari Dean accounted for seven points over a 12-4 run in the second half that pulled GSW within three points, 78-75, with 4:06 remaining, but five misses from beyond the arc by the Hurricanes down the stretch allowed North Georgia to pull away for the win.

Both teams connected on at least 50 percent of their shots overall and 45 percent from long range. The 45.5 percent 3-point shooting effort from the Hurricanes, despite their struggles at the end, was their second highest this season. North Georgia outrebounded GSW, 37-26, including a 10-4 edge on the offensive glass, and dished out seven more assists, 21-14. The most lopsided stat was bench points, where North Georgia held a 40-0 advantage.    

Who Stood Out: Dean matched his career high with 27 points to lead the Hurricanes. Dean connected on 9 of 15 from the floor and 8 of 11 from the free throw line. He added a game-high eight rebounds and three steals. Kahlon Whitley made 6 of 9 shots, including both attempts from beyond the arc, en route to his 16-point night. Thomas added 15 points and Jalen Cameron chipped in 10 with six assists. 

K.J. Jenkins came off the bench to score 19 points and lead North Georgia. Jenkins drained 5 of 6 from long range. Ephraim Tshimanga scored 14 points and dished out seven assists for the Nighthawks.   

Up Next: The Hurricanes host USC Aiken (14-9, 10-3 PBC) on Saturday at 3:30 p.m. for Boys and Girls Scout Day.