.png&width=100&height=100&type=webp)
Friday, November 17
Conway, S.C.
9:00 PM ET
Liberty University
83
vs
66
Wichita State
Rode Scores Career-High 31 Points, Liberty Bests Wichita State 83-66
11/17/2023 11:58:00 PM | Men's Basketball
CONWAY, S.C. – Liberty's Kyle Rode poured in a career-high 31 points, and the Flames bested the Wichita State Shockers 83-66 in the Myrtle Beach Invitational semifinals, Friday night at the HTC Center.
The Flames are 4-0 so far this season and will play for the tournament title on Sunday evening against Vermont (4-0). Tip time is 5:30 p.m., and the game can be seen on ESPN2. The Catamounts topped Saint Louis in the other semifinal on Friday afternoon.
Wichita State suffers its first loss of the season, falling to 4-1. Tonight's matchup was the first-ever game between the Flames and Shockers.
Box Score Highlights
Liberty Individuals: Kyle Rode 31 points (career high), 9-16 FG, 7-12 3FG (career high), 5 rebounds, 4 assists; Colin Porter 13 points, 4-8 3FG, 3 assists; Kaden Metheny 12 points, 6 rebounds, 4 assists; Brody Peebles 11 points
Wichita State Individuals: Xavier Bell 24 points, 9 rebounds, 8-10 FT; Colby Rogers 16 points
Key Team Stats: Liberty assisted on 18 of its 28 made field goals, compared to only three assists on 24 field goals for Wichita State. The Flames knocked down 14 three-pointers, and the Shockers hit two. Liberty held sizeable advantages in bench points (20-6) and second chance points (16-7), while Wichita State had a 40-28 edge in points in the paint.
Thoughts From Head Coach Ritchie McKay
"I'm really proud of this group because I think Wichita State will win a tough of games. It was a really hard-fought battle and nice atmosphere. It was really highly competitive. I think it's a privilege to be invited to one of the ESPN Events, especially when you have the quality of opponents that reside in this bracket, and none better than Vermont. I love the way their team plays, and I love the way our team plays. To get a crack at Furman, Wichita State and Vermont, that's only going to help us down the road, and we'll see how we go."
Turning Point
For a second straight night, Liberty distanced itself from its opponent with a big second half run. This time it was a 19-2 run that took a two-point lead and turned it into a 73-54 advantage with 5:07 remaining.
The Flames had led 54-42 early in the second half before a 10-0 Shockers run made it a two-point game, 54-52, with 10:40 left. Liberty's 19-2 run was in a span of only 4:11 and started with a Kaden Metheny three-pointer that bounced around the rim and in for a 57-52 lead. A three-point play by Shiloh Robinson at the 8:19 mark widened the lead to eight, 60-52, and a Brody Peebles jumper 55 seconds later pushed the lead to 10 (62-52). Moments later, Kyle Rode buried a three to establish a new career high of 25 points at the time for a 13-point Liberty lead, 65-52 at the 6:53 mark. Rode (5:43 mark) and Peebles (5:07 mark) hit back-to-back triples to close out the run and make it a 73-54 lead.
Key Stats & Notes
Liberty (4-0) and Vermont (4-0) will square off in the championship game, Sunday night at 5:30 p.m. on ESPN2. This will be the first-ever meeting between the Flames and Catamounts.
The Flames are 4-0 so far this season and will play for the tournament title on Sunday evening against Vermont (4-0). Tip time is 5:30 p.m., and the game can be seen on ESPN2. The Catamounts topped Saint Louis in the other semifinal on Friday afternoon.
Wichita State suffers its first loss of the season, falling to 4-1. Tonight's matchup was the first-ever game between the Flames and Shockers.
Box Score Highlights
Liberty Individuals: Kyle Rode 31 points (career high), 9-16 FG, 7-12 3FG (career high), 5 rebounds, 4 assists; Colin Porter 13 points, 4-8 3FG, 3 assists; Kaden Metheny 12 points, 6 rebounds, 4 assists; Brody Peebles 11 points
Wichita State Individuals: Xavier Bell 24 points, 9 rebounds, 8-10 FT; Colby Rogers 16 points
Key Team Stats: Liberty assisted on 18 of its 28 made field goals, compared to only three assists on 24 field goals for Wichita State. The Flames knocked down 14 three-pointers, and the Shockers hit two. Liberty held sizeable advantages in bench points (20-6) and second chance points (16-7), while Wichita State had a 40-28 edge in points in the paint.
Thoughts From Head Coach Ritchie McKay
"I'm really proud of this group because I think Wichita State will win a tough of games. It was a really hard-fought battle and nice atmosphere. It was really highly competitive. I think it's a privilege to be invited to one of the ESPN Events, especially when you have the quality of opponents that reside in this bracket, and none better than Vermont. I love the way their team plays, and I love the way our team plays. To get a crack at Furman, Wichita State and Vermont, that's only going to help us down the road, and we'll see how we go."
Turning Point
For a second straight night, Liberty distanced itself from its opponent with a big second half run. This time it was a 19-2 run that took a two-point lead and turned it into a 73-54 advantage with 5:07 remaining.
The Flames had led 54-42 early in the second half before a 10-0 Shockers run made it a two-point game, 54-52, with 10:40 left. Liberty's 19-2 run was in a span of only 4:11 and started with a Kaden Metheny three-pointer that bounced around the rim and in for a 57-52 lead. A three-point play by Shiloh Robinson at the 8:19 mark widened the lead to eight, 60-52, and a Brody Peebles jumper 55 seconds later pushed the lead to 10 (62-52). Moments later, Kyle Rode buried a three to establish a new career high of 25 points at the time for a 13-point Liberty lead, 65-52 at the 6:53 mark. Rode (5:43 mark) and Peebles (5:07 mark) hit back-to-back triples to close out the run and make it a 73-54 lead.
Key Stats & Notes
- Kyle Rode's career-high 31 points are seven more than his previous career high of 24 points, which came against Lipscomb on Feb. 8, 2022. Rode's seven threes tonight were also a new career best, eclipsing his previous mark of six set in that same game versus Lipscomb.
- Rode's 31-point effort is tied for the fourth-highest individual scoring game in Myrtle Beach Invitational history. Rode is the first Flame to score 30 or more points in a game since Darius McGhee scored 31 points against Wisconsin in the second round of the NIT, last season (March 19, 2023).
- The Flames are one of 20 teams in the nation with a 4-0 record. Houston is the only team with a 5-0 mark.
- Liberty has won all four of its games this season by double digits.
- The Flames' 40 three-point attempts (14-of-40) tonight are their fourth most in a game in school history.
- Shiloh Robinson led the Flames at +26 for the night. Robinson was a +19 in the first half in only 9:08 of action.
- Liberty will play for a tournament title on Sunday. The Flames' last tournament title came at the DC Holiday Hoops Fest on Dec. 21, 2019.
- Rode is averaging 24.3 ppg over his last three games and has scored 50 points in two Myrtle Beach Invitational contests. He is the second-leading scorer (25.0 ppg) at the tournament.
- With three assists tonight, Colin Porter moved into the top 50 in school history for career assists with 153. He is tied for 49th in school history with 153 assists in only 40 career games up to this point.
- Zach Cleveland was a +22 in the second half in 12:01 of action after being a -15 in the first half. In the second half, Cleveland totaled seven rebounds, four assists and three steals.
- Redshirt freshman Ben Southerland made his collegiate debut tonight. The forward scored his first career point on a free throw at the 10:49 mark of the first half.
Liberty (4-0) and Vermont (4-0) will square off in the championship game, Sunday night at 5:30 p.m. on ESPN2. This will be the first-ever meeting between the Flames and Catamounts.
Players Mentioned
F
/ Men's Basketball
G
/ Men's Basketball
G
/ Men's Basketball
G
/ Men's Basketball
G
/ Men's Basketball
F
/ Men's Basketball
F
/ Men's BasketballStep Into My Office with Ritchie McKay
Tuesday, September 30
Kaden Metheny & Zach Cleveland Talk About The Upcoming Season
Tuesday, September 23
Jesse Sanders: Faith in the Fight
Thursday, May 01
Coach McKay, Kaden Metheny & Zach Cleveland Talk About The Game Against Oregon
Saturday, March 22