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Liberty University
24-7,15-3ASUN
Queens
17-14,7-11ASUN
Liberty Earns Share of ASUN Regular Season Title on Senior Night, Races Past Queens for 73-53 Victory
2/24/2023 10:50:50 PM | Men's Basketball
Head Coach Ritchie McKay Press Conference
Joseph Venzant and Darius McGhee Press Conference
2023 ASUN Men's Basketball Championship Bracket
Liberty earned a share of the 2023 ASUN Conference regular season title, racing past Queens for a 73-53 victory on Senior Night, Friday evening in front of a Liberty Arena record crowd of 4,041 fans.
The Flames finish the regular season with a 24-7 overall record and 15-3 ASUN mark. Liberty shares the ASUN regular season title with Kennesaw State (23-8, 15-3 ASUN). In five years in the ASUN, the Flames have shared the ASUN regular season crown three times (2019, 2020, 2023), won the outright title once (2021) and claimed a division title (East Division, 2022) one time.
Liberty will be the No. 2 seed for the upcoming 2023 ASUN Men’s Basketball Championship. The Flames will face either No. 7 seed North Florida (14-16, 9-9 ASUN) or No. 8 seed Bellarmine (14-17, 9-9 ASUN) in the quarterfinals of the ASUN Tournament. UNF and Bellarmine will square off on Monday at 7 p.m. in the first round, with the winner set to face Liberty in Tuesday’s quarterfinals at 7 p.m. Both games will be held at Liberty Arena.
The Flames’ 15 victories in conference play are their most ever for Liberty in a conference season. Meanwhile, Liberty’s 24 regular season wins are the third most in school history.
Prior to Friday night’s game, the Flames honored their five-player senior class – Darius McGhee, Stephen Burggraf, Blake Preston, Kyle Rode and Shiloh Robinson – with a special ceremony. The program also honored managers Joshua Street and Tyler Czock.
Thoughts From Head Coach Ritchie McKay
“From every person in that locker room, our crowd carried the day tonight. They were tremendous, absolutely phenomenal. The moment we broke the ice, I felt like they were worth six, eight, 10 points. I’m really proud of our group. I think we outlasted against a very good team. I have a ton of respect for Grant (Leonard), their staff, their players. Their program is terrific. It’s really hard to win a championship. I’m blessed that we got a chance to do it with this group at this university this season.”
Box Score Highlights
Liberty Individuals: Darius McGhee 18 points, 6 assists, 4 rebounds, 2 steals; Kyle Rode 14 points, 5 rebounds; Blake Preston 10 points, 7 rebounds, 3 blocks; Isiah Warfield 9 points, 4 rebounds; Shiloh Robinson 8 points, 3-5 FG; Joseph Venzant 5 points, 10 rebounds
Queens Individuals: Kenny Dye 9 points, 3-11 FG, 6 assists; Chris Ashby 9 points, 3-5 3FG
Key Team Stats: After shooting only 30.8 percent (8-of-26) from the field in the first half, Liberty shot 57.6 percent (19-of-33) from the floor over the final 20 minutes to finish at 45.8 percent for the game. The Flames defense held Queens to 36.7 percent (18-of-49) on the night and limited the Royals to a season-low 53 points, almost 27 points below their season average. Queens’ previous season low was 60 points on two occasions. Liberty held a decisive 42-18 edge in points in the paint. The Flames matched a season high with five blocks, led by Blake Preston with a career-high five blocks. Liberty forced 14 Queens turnovers, converting them into 22 points. Meanwhile, the Royals scored 11 points off 10 Flames turnovers.
Turning Point
Liberty trailed 44-39 with 11:29 left before a 23-3 run put the Flames ahead by 15, 62-47. The Flames’ 23-3 run was punctuated by an Isiah Warfield basket at the 4:51 mark.
Darius McGhee scored 12 points during the stretch, and Joseph Venzant’s pair of layups at the 8:28 and 7:13 mark broke a 47-47 tie and gave the hosts a 51-47 advantage, a lead they would never relinquish.
Key Stats & Notes
• Liberty’s victory is its second in three days over Queens. The Flames improve to 3-0 against the Royals.
• Prior to tonight’s record attendance of 4,041, the previous record was 4,034, set on Nov. 11, 2021 against Regent.
• After a scoreless first half, Darius McGhee erupted for 18 points in the second frame. He led all scorers with 18 points in the game and is up to 2,556 points. The last time McGhee had a scoreless half was the first half against Manhattan on Nov. 20, 2021.
• If you combine the two second halves against Queens over the last three days, Liberty shot 58.6 percent (34-of-58) from the field in those two frames.
• Senior Kyle Rode totaled 14 points and five rebounds. The Lexington, Ky. native has been in double figures in 13 of his last 14 games.
• Redshirt senior Blake Preston finished the night with 10 points and seven rebounds, his 10th game in double figures this year.
• Joseph Venzant grabbed 10 rebounds in 21:22 of action, his fourth game this season with 10 or more rebounds and fifth of his career.
• McGhee shared game high honors with six assists, his seventh game this year with five or more assists.
Up Next
Liberty has earned the No. 2 seed for the upcoming 2023 ASUN Men’s Basketball Championship. The Flames will await their quarterfinal round opponent. No. 7 seed North Florida (14-16, 9-9 ASUN) and No. 8 seed Bellarmine (14-17, 9-9 ASUN) square off in the first round of the ASUN Tournament at Liberty Arena, Monday night at 7 p.m. The winner of that game will face Liberty, Tuesday evening at 7 p.m. at Liberty Arena.
Liberty is 1-0 this season against UNF and 2-0 versus Bellarmine.
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