Box Score CHARLOTTE, North Carolina -- The Piedmont College men's basketball team dropped a 95-85 non-conference decision to Johnson & Wales University of Charlotte to fall to 0-2 on the young season.  Four Lions reached double-figures in scoring but it was not enough to chase down the hot-shooting Wildcats.

Piedmont held a 34-25 lead in the first half only to see JWU respond with a 15-6 run to close the half as the two teams entered intermission deadlocked at 40.  The Wilcats would extend their lead to double-figures through hot shooting from behind the three-point line.  JWU netted six second half three and finished 9-21 (41%) on the night.

JWU would score nine of the first 11 points of the second half as they came out of the locker room on fire, hitting five of their first six shots. The Lions would cut the lead to four at the 14:51 mark on a layup by JESSIE JENKINS. JWU would respond immediately going on a 12-2 run over the next three minutes that would give them their largest lead of the game at 65-51. Piedmont would cut the lead to as few as eight on three different occasions. JWU would hit 10 of their 15 free throw attempts down the stretch to close out the 95-85 win.

The Wildcats placed five players in double figures led by Joshua Cohen's 22 and Jay Keller's 21. JWU shot 34-61 from the floor (56%) for the evening and was fueled by a 21-30 (67%) mark after halftime.

Piedmont's JESSIE JENKINS was the Lions' statistical leader with 26 points and nine rebounds.  DYLAN DELANEY added 21 points including five three-pointers.  ALTON HONORS II and TYLER ARNOLD rounded out Piedmont's double-figure scorers with 13 and 11 respectively.  WILL SKAGGS dished out nine assists on the evening.

Piedmont returns to action this weekend with a non-conference road swing through central Virginia where PC will square off against Lynchburg College at 3:00 on Saturday before traveling to play Hampden-Sydney College on Sunday afternoon at 1:00.