Pele Paelay (pronounced PAY-lay PAY-lay) scored a career-high 38 points Monday to lead Coastal Carolina to a 79-68 win over VMI at Cameron Hall. Paelay, a junior guard, tied for the sixth-best output in Coastal history and was only two points shy of tying the Cameron Hall record set by Bridgewater's Ramsey Yeatts in 1987.

"I got some easy layups," said Paelay, a first-year starter who entered the game averaging 16.3 points. "The first couple easy layups helped me get going. ... The middle was really open today, and that's the key because we were able to get layups and then I got us going outside."

"He's like a great running back," Coastal coach Pete Strickland said. "You get him some seams, he's going to be able to get in some seams and make some things happen."

Paelay's family moved from Liberia to America when he was 5 years old. He has the same first name as his father but a different middle name (Balla). He said he loves his repetitive-sounding first and last names.

"Everybody always asks me about it," Paelay said with a grin. "Everyone likes it."

With a first name like Pele, it only makes sense that he was good in both basketball and soccer at Magruder High School in Derwood, Md. He led Magruder to a state title in each sport. He was chosen to play in the Capitol Classic all-star basketball game and was named The Washington Post's soccer player of the year.

Paelay, whose team led the entire second half Monday, made 14 of 23 field-GOOOOOAAL attempts. He was 4-of-7 from 3-point territory and 6-of-7 from the free-throw line.

"He could shoot the 3, he could take it off the dribble," said VMI freshman forward Reggie Williams, who had 23 points. "He really ran the floor well; they were getting fast-break points. He knew how to draw a foul to get contact."

"You hope somebody would say, 'Enough's enough' on that kid," Keydets coach Bart Bellairs said. "I didn't think we took that as a personal challenge."

VMI (5-7, 0-2 Big South), which allowed 10 3-pointers, lost its fifth straight game.

"We've got to start over and learn how to win," Bellairs said. "We're going to work hard on our defense. ... We need to have a little more of a warrior-type attitude."

Leading 33-30 at halftime, the Chanticleers (5-10, 2-1) opened the second half on an 11-3 run to build a 44-33 cushion with 15:23 to go. Coastal led by as many as 20 points in the second half, when it shot 57.1 percent from the field.

"We've got to come out hard in the second half," Williams said. "The second half, we just fall off the first couple minutes. We can't do that."

"We just didn't concentrate," VMI guard Levar Joseph said. "We didn't bring the intensity we need. ... Sometimes we have little mental breakdowns during the game and we've got to find a way to fix that."

The Keydets shot 35.4 percent from the field, including 5-of-25 from 3-point range.

"We shot 25 3's and made five, so that means they're out there running and they're a pretty good transition team," Bellairs said. "Our shot selection's got to be a lot better. Twenty-five 3's is way too many."

Williams, the Keydets' leading scorer this year, was demoted from the starting lineup for the first time because Bellairs wanted him to give the team a "jump-start."

COASTALCAROLINA(5-10)

Sonko 1-4 0-0 2, Nagel 1-5 2-2 4, Green 4-10 1-2 11, Paelay 14-23 6-7 38, Leasure 6-13 0-0 15, Reinders 0-0 0-0 0, Stevens 0-1 2-2 2, Nichols 0-0 0-0 0, Ferguson 1-4 0-0 3, Cross 2-4 0-1 4. Totals 29-64 11-14 79.

VMI(5-7)

Murrer 0-1 0-0 0, Mielnik 2-4 2-2 6, Allmond 2-3 2-4 6, Coward 2-12 3-6 7, Joseph 4-11 0-0 10, Williams 7-14 6-6 23, Mankevicius 1-1 0-0 2, Robinson 2-9 1-2 5, Christiansen 1-1 1-1 3, Beverly 1-4 1-1 3, Castleberry 0-2 0-0 0, Jarman 1-3 1-2 3. Totals 23-65 17-24 68.

Halftime-Coastal Carolina 33-30. 3-Point goals-Coastal Carolina 10-23 (Paelay 4-7, Leasure 3-9, Green 2-4, Ferguson 1-2), VMI 5-25 (Williams 3-6, Joseph 2-7, Robinson 0-6, Coward 0-5, Murrer 0-1). Fouled out-Sonko, Nagel. Rebounds-Coastal Carolina 38 (Paelay 8), VMI 45 (Mielnik, Williams 8). Assists-Coastal Carolina 16 (Nagel, Leasure 4), VMI 6 (Coward 3). Total fouls-Coastal Carolina 21, VMI 17. A-2,461.