FAYETTEVILLE, N.C.  Monarchs men's basketball is on a two-game winning streak after defeating Berea College, 74-66, Saturday afternoon at the Riddle Center. The game improves Methodist to 3-4 overall and 2-0 in conference play.

After an 8-0 Berea run had given the Mountaineers the lead, 39-33, in the early moments of the second half, the Monarchs went on an incredible 19-2 run to take command after the lead had previously switched hands a whopping 17 times. There were also eight ties before Methodist's burst.

THE ESSENTIALS
Final score: Methodist def. Berea, 74-66
Records: Methodist 3-4 (2-0 USA South), Berea 5-2 (0-1 USA South)
Location: Riddle Center; Fayetteville, N.C.

HOW IT HAPPENED

• Methodist found points from all areas, outscoring the Mountaineers in points in paint, bench points, points off turnovers, and fastbreak points.
• The Monarchs' full court press made all the difference in the second half when they forced eight Berea turnovers en route to the 19-2 run and a 52-41 lead. Offensively, the run was started by a hustle play by Garren Dearman who came away with the offensive rebound after a three-pointer, made the layup, and made the and-one.
• Dante Burden had the crowd on its feet when he came away with the steal, made an acrobatic layup, and drew the foul. That three-point play punctuated the 19-2 run and the game, overall.
• With nine minutes left in the second half, the Mountaineers climbed back to cut deficit to only seven points at 52-45. Chris Pernell responded with two made shots behind the arc and Malik Manley had one to give Methodist a 16-point lead, its biggest lead of the night.
• The first 12 points by the Monarchs were either scored by or assisted by Burden. Burden had six points and two assists in that timeframe as he picked up right where he left off after his 27-point outburst in the win against Pfeiffer.
• The biggest lead in the first half by either team was only five points, which was by the Monarchs when the score was 9-4. Besides that moment, it had been a one-possession game.

STAT FACTS

• Kaymon Mitchell and Garren Dearman each had 14 points on only ten shots. Mitchell also added eight rebounds. Dearman contributed four rebounds and two assists.
• The eight three-pointers made is an early season-high for the Monarchs as Pernell went 3-of-6 and Malik Edwards was 2-of-3 behind the arc.
• In the first half, Methodist scored 31 points. They upped that total to 45 points in the second half. A big reason for that was improving their field goal percentage from 40 percent to 47 percent in the second half.
• There seems to be a pattern for the Monarchs as they are 3-0 when they out-rebound their opponents. Methodist out-rebounded Berea 45-33 and 17-10 in offensive rebounds.
• For Berea, 66 points scored marks a season-low after topping 88 points in four of the six previous games.
• It was all Isaac Caudill and Torell Carter for the Mountaineers as they lead with 12 points each and combined for 17 rebounds. However, the Monarch defense made them work for their shots as they shot 7-of-26 total.

UP NEXT

• Methodist is back on the home court tomorrow to play conference opponent Maryville (Tenn.) at 3 p.m.
• Berea is on the road again to play Greensboro College in a conference matchup tomorrow at 2 p.m.