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Demorest, GA -- The Piedmont College men's basketball team fell to in-state foe Oglethorpe University by a final of 81-71 earlier this evening in the Cave.  Despite shooting over 50% from the field and behind the 3-point arc for the game, the Lions would be undone by free throw and foul troubles throughout the contest eventually dropping the ten point decision to the Stormy Petrels.

In the opening minutes of play, it was clear that this clash between Gerogia colleges would be an offensive showcase as each team lit up the scoreboard from downtown in the early going.  Both teams hit over 50% of shots taken from three-point land as PC rode the hot shooting hand of Josh Haymore who was a perfect three for three on three-point buckets while going 5-7 from the field in the first 20 minutes.

While Oglethorpe owned a 50-35 lead at the intermission, Piedmont would continue to battle back into the contest pulling to within nine on a Kevin Kubandi jumper with 3:28 to go in the game.  However, Piedmont's ability to pick up key stops down the stretch would be hampered with two key starters in foul trouble as Oglethorpe held on for the ten point victory.

Haymore ended up as the Lions' scoring leader on the night care of his early offensive success that propelled him to 13 total points in 22 minutes of action.  The junior had a solid night from the floor finishing 5-8 from after cooling down from his first half start.

Adding ten points a piece to the cause was sophomore Michael Ross and junior Tracey Gardner as the two also combined to snag 14 of the team's 30 total rebounds.  Freshman point guard Will Skaggs reached double-digit assists for the second consecutive game tallying ten even once more this season.

Despite shooting the lights out from the field throughout the game, it would be Piedmont's problems in the foul department that would be their undoing at both ends of the court.  With two key defensive players in foul trouble through the second half, the Lions would also struggle at the line themselves shooting just 25% from the free throw line in the first half while managing only 35.3% overall from the charity stripe.

The loss drops Piedmont to an even 1-1 on the season.  After taking a short break for Thanksgiving, the Lions will take their leftover turkey on the road as they make the journey to Memphis, TN for the Crowne Plaza Thanksgiving Classic hosted by Rhodes College this weekend.  Piedmont will open tourney play with a 8:00 game against the host institution on Saturday, November 27.