Liberty University
2-0
Summit University
0-2
| Team | 1 | 2 | F |
|---|---|---|---|
| Summit | 25 | 27 | 52 |
| Liberty | 52 | 38 | 90 |
3-Point Efficiency Propels Liberty Over Summit
11/14/2015 12:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
The Liberty men's basketball team moved to 2-0, Saturday night inside the Vines Center, defeating Summit University, 90-52.
Redshirt sophomore guard Ryan Kemrite led the Flames with a career-high 22 points, thanks in large part to a team-leading six three-pointers in just seven attempts. Freshman guard Lovell Cabbil also had a big night, knocking down five-of-seven from beyond the arc en route to a 19-point performance. After playing just five games last season due to injury, Ezra Talbert posted a career-high 18 points. For the second straight contest, sophomore center Evan Maxwell finished the night in double-scoring figures with 14 tallies, to go along with a game-high seven rebounds.
Summit's (0-2) Abe Valentine was the Defenders' leading scorer, concluding the night with 19 points.
Liberty displayed efficiency from the field, shooting 58.9 percent (33-of-56) for the contest, including 50.0 percent (14-of-28) from the three-point arc. The Flames' 14 made treys in the contest are the most since Liberty knocked down 15 in a 95-80 win over Charleston Southern during the second season of head coach Ritchie McKay's first tenure with the Flames (Feb. 14, 2009). The 14 triples are also tied for fourth all-time in program history for a single game.
After Maxwell kick started the Flames' offense with a thunderous dunk in the opening 19 seconds, Cabbil wasted little time displaying his range. The freshman accounted for 11 points of Liberty's 17-4 game-opening run, swishing a pair of three-pointers during the span.
Following Cabbil's second trey, Summit's Nate Wiersma countered with a layup on the other end. The Flames responded with a Maxwell layup and a Talbert three-pointer to take a commanding 22-6 lead at the 12:21 mark.
Liberty continued to pour on the three-pointers, with Kemrite, Talbert and Cabbil all contributing from downtown. Cabbil closed out the half with his fifth three-pointer with three ticks remaining, sending Liberty into the locker room with a 52-25 halftime lead.
The Flames closed out the opening half shooting 66.7 percent (18-of-27), hitting 9-of-14 shots from three-point land (64.3 percent).
Cabbil led all scorers at the half with 19 tallies, while Maxwell had 12 points and six rebounds. Valentine paced the Defenders with 14 points.
Kemrite took over offensively for the Flames in the second half, scoring 14 in the stanza. The redshirt sophomore recorded four treys in the period, including a three-pointer at 14:01 that gave the Flames a 71-33 advantage.
Talbert continued to connect from long distance throughout the frame. His third and final trifecta made it 87-48 with 3:43 left.
Freshman Sam Worman entered the contest in the closing minutes, giving Liberty its largest lead of the night (41) with 1:15 remaining, setting up the 90-52 final.
Liberty returns to the Vines Center on Tuesday to host William & Mary. Game time is slated for 7 p.m., with the contest broadcasting live on the Liberty Flames Sports Network, ESPN3, MASN and the Big South Network.
