Augusta, Ga. – The College of Coastal Georgia men's basketball team fell 79-59 to Georgia Regents University Augusta Tuesday night here in a non-conference matchup.
Playing the Jaguars at Christenberry Fieldhouse, the Mariners trailed 41-21 at intermission before both teams scored 38 points in the second half.
"Tonight was a tough one, but we never gave up and I was very proud of our guys for that," said Coastal Georgia coach Jesse Watkins. "My hat goes off to Georgia Regents. They were poised and executed their offense very well."
GRU Augusta, formerly Augusta State University, is a member of the Peach Belt Conference in the NCAA Division II ranks. The Jaguars, who are off to a 3-0 start, were picked to finish second in the always-competitive PBC this season.
For Coastal Georgia (2-4), Reggie Burke was the leading scorer in defeat with 16 points. Burke also led the team with six rebounds. Andrew Reid was the only other player to score in double figures for the Mariners as he finished with 11 points.
The Mariners shot just 38.7 percent (24-of-62) from the floor for the game.
"We knew we left a lot of points out there my missing layups and open shots. We were off tonight offensively."
For GRU Augusta, Devin Wright-Nelson scored a game-best 18 points and also pulled down 13 boards to finish with a double-double effort. Henry McCarthy came off the bench to score 14 points and grab 10 rebounds for the Jaguars while Keith Crump (13) and Keshun Sherrill (10) also hit for twin digits in the win.
The Jaguars shot 46.9 percent (30-of-64) from the field for the game.
"We only gave up 77 and we've been giving up 90," Watkins said. "We gave up too many second-chance points, though. They did a very good job of controlling the offensive glass.."
The Mariners are set to return home Friday for their Southern States Athletic Conference opener against Loyola. Game time is set for 7:30 p.m. A women's game between the schools precedes this contest.
"Now, it's time to move toward that one," Watkins noted. "We need to try to put a win streak together."
