Hartsville, S.C. – The College of Coastal Georgia men's basketball team was denied a second victory this season over Coker College here Tuesday night as the Mariners dropped the non-conference game 70-61 to the Cobras.

The Mariners, who fell to 5-17 for the season, defeated Coker 67-65 on Nov. 20 in Brunswick for their first victory of the season.

In Tuesday's rematch, the Mariners and Cobras, and NCAA Division II team, were tied 40-40 with with just over 14 minutes left after the Mariners made up a 10-point deficit early in the second half.

But Coker, now 7-8 for the year, would go on a quick 14-0 surge to take a 54-40 lead on the Mariners with just over 11 minutes to play, and that run by the home team all but did in Coastal Georgia.

The Cobras went up by as much as 17 points after that. The Mariners did rally to get within 61-55 with just over five minutes remaining, but Coker kept the Mariners from getting any closer by scoring the next seven points and surging ahead by 13 points before game's end.

Kentorey Johnson led the Mariners in defeat with 21 points and eight rebounds as he played 39 minutes. Dustin Henry, a transfer from Coker, contributed 12 points for Coastal Georgia while Reggie Burke also scored in doubles with 10 points.

Taylor Walker led Coker with 14 points including four three-pointers. Julian Nelson followed with 13 points.

Coker shot 44 percent for the game while Coastal Georgia shot just under 39 percent. The Cobras committed only nine turnovers while the Mariners had 20 for the night.

Tuesday's game was the final non-league game for the Mariners this season. They will close with seven straight games in the SSAC after getting a week off. Coastal Georgia will return to action next Tuesday with a home game against Southern Polytechnic. Game time is 8 p.m. following a women's matchup between the same two schools.