WILMINGTON, N.C. (Nov. 6) – In their second exhibition of the season, the University of Mount Olive men's basketball team fell by a score of 105-66 against UNCW on Monday night while competing at the Trask Coliseum.

With the loss, the Trojans are set to begin regular season play this weekend at the 45-Second Classic hosted on the campus of Barton. Meanwhile, the Seahawks begin the year with a 1-0 record after posting a 39-point victory over Coker in exhibition play on Nov. 1.

Redshirt sophomore Redford Dunton led the Trojans with 21 points on 7-of-14 shooting, including three-of-six from three-point range. He also contributed seven rebounds, two assists, and one block in 27 minutes of action. Sophomore Shane Peterson finished with 11 points on four-of-six shots with a trio of three-pointers while adding two rebounds in 18 minutes.

Freshman Josiah Watkins tallied eight points, five rebounds (three offensive), one assist, and one steal in 19 minutes. Sophomore Aaron Murphy also totaled eight points on four-of-five shooting with two rebounds, one assist, and one steal in 14 minutes of the bench.

UNCW built an early 7-2 advantage in the opening two minutes of the contest before the Trojans tallied four of the next six points to cut the deficit to 9-6 with 16:31 left in the first half. Over the next two minutes, UNCW mounted an 11-1 run on four-of-four shooting to take a 20-7 lead before UMO scored three straight points to close the gap to 20-10 with 12:54 remaining. The Seahawks continued to stretch the lead to 30-15 with just under eight minutes left before the teams exchanged points over the next three minutes. UNCW shot six-of-seven to close the half while Dunton and Murphy combined for 10 points, as the Seahawks held a 55-31 lead.

Mount Olive opened the second half with a quick 6-0 rally before UNCW scored 12 straight points to extend the lead to 67-37 with 15:35 left. Sophomore Trey Nelson answered with a layup, but the Seahawks remained in rhythm with a 16-2 run on seven-of-nine shooting to hold an 83-41 advantage with 11:08 remaining. The teams traded baskets over the final 10 minutes, as Peterson led UMO with nine points. UNCW shot nearly 40 percent from the field down the stretch and secured the win, 105-66.

UMO shot at a 36.1 clip (26-of-72) from the floor while going 7-of-25 (28.0 percent) from beyond the arc. Meanwhile, UNCW finished the game shooting 54.3 percent (38-of-70) and converted 9-of-22 (40.9 percent) from three-point range. The Seahawks finished with a 48-41 rebounding advantage with 29 fastbreak points, while the Trojans registered 30 points in the paint.

Junior Trazarien White finished with a game-high 23 points on 8-of-12 attempts with seven rebounds and three steals in 19 minutes. Graduate student KJ Jenkins registered 14 points on five-of-eight shots with two rebounds and two assists in 17 minutes. Senior Nick Farrar totaled 12 points, eight rebounds, and four assists in 20 minutes, while graduate student Shykeim Phillips contributed 10 points and three steals in 15 minutes.

Mount Olive starts the 2023-24 regular season on Friday, Nov. 10 versus Augusta at the Barton 45-Second Classic in Wilson, North Carolina.