Thursday, February 4
Lynchburg, Va.
8:00 PM
Liberty University
11-12, 6-5BSC
43
vs
67
Winthrop
12-10, 8-4BSC
| Team | 1 | 2 | F |
|---|---|---|---|
| Winthrop | 34 | 33 | 67 |
| Liberty | 21 | 22 | 43 |
Winthrop Defeats Flames at Home, 67-43
2/4/2010 12:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
Looking to regain a top-four spot in the Big South Conference standings, the Liberty men's basketball team played host to Winthrop on Thursday. Despite keeping it close with the Eagles in their previous meeting this season, the Flames found themselves down by double digits early and were unable to gain the advantage, falling to the visitors, 67-43.
The Eagles struck first at 19:02, as Reggie Middleton knocked down a trey to give Winthrop an early 3-0 lead.
Following a basket by Patrick Konan to cut it to one, Winthrop responded with a 9-0 run to take a 12-2 advantage at 15:40.
The Flames halted Winthrop's scoring streak at 13:38, when Jesse Sanders capitalized on an old-fashioned three-point play to make it 12-5.
Chris Perez also received his chance at a traditional three-point play at 12:43 after being fouled on a made basket. Following a missed free throw by Perez, Sanders grabbed the rebound, dishing it to Jeremy Anderson for a three-point basket. Anderson's trey at 12:39 trimmed the Winthrop lead to a pair, 12-10.
The Flames knotted the contest at 12 just 1:20 later, as Sanders lofted a pass to Carter McMasters, who flushed the alley oop, capping off a 10-0 Flames run.
With the contest tied again, 14-14, with 10:00 left in the half, Winthrop proceeded to pull away over the ensuing 3:29, going on an 8-0 spurt to go up 22-14.
Winthrop increased the margin to double digits again, 29-19, with 3:34 remaining in the contest, when Robbie Dreher connected on a three-pointer. In the closing minutes, the Eagles continued to widen the gap, outscoring the Flames 5-2 to head into the locker room with a 34-21 advantage at halftime.
Matt Morgan led the way for the Eagles at the half with 10 points, followed by Charles Corbin and Middleton with nine and eight, respectively. Gordon finished out the opening period as Liberty's scoring leader with five tallies.
Winthrop shot 48.1 percent (13-of-27) from the field in the first half, while Liberty shot 45.0 percent (9-of-20).
The Eagles capitalized on the Liberty's miscues in the period, outscoring the Flames in points off turnovers, 14-2.
Liberty managed to chip away at the Eagles' lead in the opening minutes of the second half, out-pointing the visitors 6-2 to make it 36-27 at 17:27.
Winthrop pulled out to a 13-point lead at 15:13, when Justin Burton nailed a jumper, putting the Eagles up, 40-27.
The Flames trimmed the deficit to eight over the next 53 seconds, as Gordon netted a shot from downtown, making it 40-32 to cap off a quick five-point burst.
Winthrop prevented Liberty from climbing any closer down the stretch, as the Eagles went on 20-2 run over the next 9:42, going up 60-34. The Flames' pair of tallies came from the charity stripe, as the Flames went scoreless from the field during the span.
Anderson snapped the Flames' field goal drought with 4:38 remaining, hitting a trey to make it 60-37. Winthrop maintained its lead in the closing minutes, taking the contest, 67-43.
The Eagles improve to 12-10 overall and 8-4 in conference play, while Liberty falls to 11-12 on the season and 6-5 in the Big South.
Morgan finished as the game's leading scorer, posting 16 points, followed by Cobin with 15. Gordon led the way for the Flames with eight.
Winthrop hit 28-of-58 shots from the field (48.3 percent), holding the Flames to 32.0 percent shooting (16-of-50) on the night. Despite entering the game leading the Big South in free throw percentage (72.3 percent), the Flames struggled from the charity stripe in the contest, hitting 8-of-21 foul shots (38.1 percent).
Liberty returns to the Vines Center on Saturday to host Presbyterian. The Flames took the first meeting with the Blue Hose on Jan. 7, defeating Presbyterian, 77-67, in Clinton, S.C. The Blue Hose enter the contest with a 4-20 record on the season and a 2-10 posting in conference play after falling to the VMI Keydets in Lexington, Va., on Thursday, 97-78. Tipoff for Saturday's matchup is slated for 7 p.m.
The Eagles struck first at 19:02, as Reggie Middleton knocked down a trey to give Winthrop an early 3-0 lead.
Following a basket by Patrick Konan to cut it to one, Winthrop responded with a 9-0 run to take a 12-2 advantage at 15:40.
The Flames halted Winthrop's scoring streak at 13:38, when Jesse Sanders capitalized on an old-fashioned three-point play to make it 12-5.
Chris Perez also received his chance at a traditional three-point play at 12:43 after being fouled on a made basket. Following a missed free throw by Perez, Sanders grabbed the rebound, dishing it to Jeremy Anderson for a three-point basket. Anderson's trey at 12:39 trimmed the Winthrop lead to a pair, 12-10.
The Flames knotted the contest at 12 just 1:20 later, as Sanders lofted a pass to Carter McMasters, who flushed the alley oop, capping off a 10-0 Flames run.
With the contest tied again, 14-14, with 10:00 left in the half, Winthrop proceeded to pull away over the ensuing 3:29, going on an 8-0 spurt to go up 22-14.
Winthrop increased the margin to double digits again, 29-19, with 3:34 remaining in the contest, when Robbie Dreher connected on a three-pointer. In the closing minutes, the Eagles continued to widen the gap, outscoring the Flames 5-2 to head into the locker room with a 34-21 advantage at halftime.
Matt Morgan led the way for the Eagles at the half with 10 points, followed by Charles Corbin and Middleton with nine and eight, respectively. Gordon finished out the opening period as Liberty's scoring leader with five tallies.
Winthrop shot 48.1 percent (13-of-27) from the field in the first half, while Liberty shot 45.0 percent (9-of-20).
The Eagles capitalized on the Liberty's miscues in the period, outscoring the Flames in points off turnovers, 14-2.
Liberty managed to chip away at the Eagles' lead in the opening minutes of the second half, out-pointing the visitors 6-2 to make it 36-27 at 17:27.
Winthrop pulled out to a 13-point lead at 15:13, when Justin Burton nailed a jumper, putting the Eagles up, 40-27.
The Flames trimmed the deficit to eight over the next 53 seconds, as Gordon netted a shot from downtown, making it 40-32 to cap off a quick five-point burst.
Winthrop prevented Liberty from climbing any closer down the stretch, as the Eagles went on 20-2 run over the next 9:42, going up 60-34. The Flames' pair of tallies came from the charity stripe, as the Flames went scoreless from the field during the span.
Anderson snapped the Flames' field goal drought with 4:38 remaining, hitting a trey to make it 60-37. Winthrop maintained its lead in the closing minutes, taking the contest, 67-43.
The Eagles improve to 12-10 overall and 8-4 in conference play, while Liberty falls to 11-12 on the season and 6-5 in the Big South.
Morgan finished as the game's leading scorer, posting 16 points, followed by Cobin with 15. Gordon led the way for the Flames with eight.
Winthrop hit 28-of-58 shots from the field (48.3 percent), holding the Flames to 32.0 percent shooting (16-of-50) on the night. Despite entering the game leading the Big South in free throw percentage (72.3 percent), the Flames struggled from the charity stripe in the contest, hitting 8-of-21 foul shots (38.1 percent).
Liberty returns to the Vines Center on Saturday to host Presbyterian. The Flames took the first meeting with the Blue Hose on Jan. 7, defeating Presbyterian, 77-67, in Clinton, S.C. The Blue Hose enter the contest with a 4-20 record on the season and a 2-10 posting in conference play after falling to the VMI Keydets in Lexington, Va., on Thursday, 97-78. Tipoff for Saturday's matchup is slated for 7 p.m.
Team Stats
WU
LIBERTY
FG%
.483
.320
3FG%
.235
.188
FT%
.467
.381
RB
44
32
TO
14
18
STL
8
3
Game Leaders
Pts
8
FGM
3
3FGM
1
FTM
1
Pts
7
FGM
3
3FGM
0
FTM
1
Pts
6
FGM
2
3FGM
0
FTM
2
Pts
6
FGM
2
3FGM
2
FTM
0
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