No. 4 Seed Union Men’s Basketball Falls to No. 1 Seed Pikeville in AAC Semifinals

KINGSPORT, Tenn. — The fourth-seeded Union Commonwealth University men's basketball team (14-16) fell to top-seeded, No. 6 University of Pikeville (27-3), 73-61, Friday afternoon in the semifinals of the Appalachian Athletic Conference Tournament at MeadowView Marriott Convention Center & Conference Resort.

Kaleb Hedgepeth led the way for the Bulldogs with 22 points on 9-of-14 shooting from the field. Dallas Rufus was the only other Union player in double figures with 15 points.

HOW IT HAPPENED

First Half: Pikeville 42, Union Commonwealth 29
Pikeville opened the game with three consecutive 3-pointers to take a 9-0 lead. The Bulldogs answered with a 7-3 run to cut the deficit to 12-7, but the Bears responded with a 13-5 surge to extend the margin to 25-12.

With 9:50 remaining in the half, Hedgepeth knocked down a 3-pointer to trim the deficit to eight at 27-19. After the teams traded baskets over the next several minutes, Pikeville pushed its lead back to 10 at 37-27 with 3:56 left. The Bears carried a 42-29 advantage into halftime.

Second Half: Pikeville 73, Union Commonwealth 61
Union Commonwealth cut the deficit to eight once more at 55-47 midway through the second half. Pikeville answered with a series of 3-pointers to extend its lead to 64-48.

The Bulldogs outscored the Bears 13-9 over the final stretch, but were unable to close the gap as Pikeville secured the 73-61 victory.

UP NEXT
Union Commonwealth concludes its season at 14-16 and will turn its attention to preparations for the 2026-27 campaign.