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Thursday, February 1
Las Cruces, N.M.
9:00 PM ET/7:00 PM MT
Liberty University
13-9,2-5CUSA
73
at
79
New Mexico State
10-12,4-3CUSA
1
2
OT 1
F
Liberty
37
32
4
73
New Mexico St.
35
34
10
79
Liberty Falls to New Mexico State in OT, 79-73
2/1/2024 11:55:00 PM | Men's Basketball
LAS CRUCES, N.M. – Liberty fell to New Mexico State in overtime by a 79-73 score, Thursday evening at the Pan American Center.
The Flames drop to 13-9 on the season and 2-5 in CUSA action. Meanwhile, New Mexico State improves to 10-12 overall and 4-3 in league play. The Aggies improve to 10-1 at home, while the Flames slip to 1-5 on the road this season.
Zach Cleveland matched a career high with 23 points and added eight rebounds, seven assists, three steals and two blocks. Kaden Metheny added 16 points for the visitors, and Brody Peebles scored 13. Christian Cook poured in a game-best 27 points for the Aggies.
Liberty is 0-2 in overtime games this season. The Flames lost in overtime at Louisiana Tech by a 80-76 score, Jan. 14.
Box Score Highlights
Liberty Individuals: Zach Cleveland 23 points, 11-13 FT, 8 rebounds, 7 assists, 3 steals, 2 blocks; Kaden Metheny 16 points, 4-9 3FG, 5 rebounds; Brody Peebles 13 points
New Mexico State Individuals: Christian Cook 27 points, 9-17 FG, 6-6 FT, 6 rebounds; Jaden Harris 17 points, 6-7 FT; Femi Odulake 11 points, 10 rebounds, 3 steals, 2 blocks
Key Team Stats: The Flames shot 38.1 percent (24-of-63) on the evening and 19.4 percent (6-of-31) from the three-point line. Liberty knocked down 19-of-23 free throws (82.6 percent), led by Cleveland's career-best 11 makes on 13 attempts. New Mexico State finished the game shooting 41.5 percent (27-of-65) from the field, 31.6 percent (6-of-19) from the three-point line and 70.4 percent (19-of-27) from the free throw line. The Aggies held a 38-31 edge in rebounding. Liberty scored 32 points in the paint, compared to 30 for New Mexico State. The Flames' biggest lead was seven in the tightly-contested game, and the Aggies' biggest lead was only six. The game featured 13 ties and 15 lead changes.
Thoughts From Head Coach Ritchie McKay
"I was proud of our group for the way they responded. We ran out of gas. It's a great group to coach."
Turning Point
A back-and-forth closing two-and-a-half minutes of regulation sent the game to overtime. In the closing stages of regulation, Liberty took a one-point lead, 67-66, on a three-point play from Zach Cleveland at the 1:39 mark. The Aggies regained the lead, 69-67, with 26 ticks left on a Christian Cook three-pointer. On the next possession, Brody Peebles' layup tied the game at 69-all with 12.7 seconds remaining. The Flames' defense came up with a stop on the final possession of regulation to force overtime.
In the overtime session, the Flames were 2-of-9 from the field and 0-of-4 from the three-point line while committing a pair of turnovers in the five-minute session. Meanwhile, the Aggies were 3-of-6 from the floor and 4-of-4 from the foul line. New Mexico State closed the game on a 6-0 run over the final 2:35. Jaden Harris' jumper provided a 75-73 lead and put the home side ahead for good. Cook's jumper with 26 seconds remaining made it 77-73, and Harris helped secure the victory with a pair of free throws with 15 seconds to go.
Key Stats & Notes
Liberty will be back in action on Saturday night at UTEP (11-10, 2-4 CUSA going into night). Tip time is slated for 9 p.m. Eastern (7 p.m. Mountain) at the Don Haskins Center in El Paso, Texas.
This will be the first meeting between the Flames and Miners on the hardwood.
The Flames drop to 13-9 on the season and 2-5 in CUSA action. Meanwhile, New Mexico State improves to 10-12 overall and 4-3 in league play. The Aggies improve to 10-1 at home, while the Flames slip to 1-5 on the road this season.
Zach Cleveland matched a career high with 23 points and added eight rebounds, seven assists, three steals and two blocks. Kaden Metheny added 16 points for the visitors, and Brody Peebles scored 13. Christian Cook poured in a game-best 27 points for the Aggies.
Liberty is 0-2 in overtime games this season. The Flames lost in overtime at Louisiana Tech by a 80-76 score, Jan. 14.
Box Score Highlights
Liberty Individuals: Zach Cleveland 23 points, 11-13 FT, 8 rebounds, 7 assists, 3 steals, 2 blocks; Kaden Metheny 16 points, 4-9 3FG, 5 rebounds; Brody Peebles 13 points
New Mexico State Individuals: Christian Cook 27 points, 9-17 FG, 6-6 FT, 6 rebounds; Jaden Harris 17 points, 6-7 FT; Femi Odulake 11 points, 10 rebounds, 3 steals, 2 blocks
Key Team Stats: The Flames shot 38.1 percent (24-of-63) on the evening and 19.4 percent (6-of-31) from the three-point line. Liberty knocked down 19-of-23 free throws (82.6 percent), led by Cleveland's career-best 11 makes on 13 attempts. New Mexico State finished the game shooting 41.5 percent (27-of-65) from the field, 31.6 percent (6-of-19) from the three-point line and 70.4 percent (19-of-27) from the free throw line. The Aggies held a 38-31 edge in rebounding. Liberty scored 32 points in the paint, compared to 30 for New Mexico State. The Flames' biggest lead was seven in the tightly-contested game, and the Aggies' biggest lead was only six. The game featured 13 ties and 15 lead changes.
Thoughts From Head Coach Ritchie McKay
"I was proud of our group for the way they responded. We ran out of gas. It's a great group to coach."
Turning Point
A back-and-forth closing two-and-a-half minutes of regulation sent the game to overtime. In the closing stages of regulation, Liberty took a one-point lead, 67-66, on a three-point play from Zach Cleveland at the 1:39 mark. The Aggies regained the lead, 69-67, with 26 ticks left on a Christian Cook three-pointer. On the next possession, Brody Peebles' layup tied the game at 69-all with 12.7 seconds remaining. The Flames' defense came up with a stop on the final possession of regulation to force overtime.
In the overtime session, the Flames were 2-of-9 from the field and 0-of-4 from the three-point line while committing a pair of turnovers in the five-minute session. Meanwhile, the Aggies were 3-of-6 from the floor and 4-of-4 from the foul line. New Mexico State closed the game on a 6-0 run over the final 2:35. Jaden Harris' jumper provided a 75-73 lead and put the home side ahead for good. Cook's jumper with 26 seconds remaining made it 77-73, and Harris helped secure the victory with a pair of free throws with 15 seconds to go.
Key Stats & Notes
- Zach Cleveland's 23-point effort matches a career high. The sophomore forward also scored 23 points in Liberty's CUSA opener at Western Kentucky, Jan. 6. Cleveland now has three career 20-plus point games, all this season.
- Kaden Metheny (16 points) reached double figures in scoring for a team-best 17th time this year.
- Brody Peebles provided a boost off the bench with 13 points. The junior guard has been in double figures in three of the last four games and is averaging 11.3 ppg over his last four contests.
- Liberty drops to 0-3 in CUSA road games. Tonight's meeting was the first between the Flames and Aggies.
- Point guard Colin Porter grabbed eight rebounds, matching a team high. The eight boards are the second most for the sophomore in a game so far in his career.
Liberty will be back in action on Saturday night at UTEP (11-10, 2-4 CUSA going into night). Tip time is slated for 9 p.m. Eastern (7 p.m. Mountain) at the Don Haskins Center in El Paso, Texas.
This will be the first meeting between the Flames and Miners on the hardwood.
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Team Stats
Lib
NMSU
FG%
.381
.415
3FG%
.194
.316
FT%
.826
.704
RB
31
38
TO
11
10
STL
4
5
Game Leaders
Pts
23
FGM
6
3FGM
0
FTM
11
Pts
16
FGM
5
3FGM
4
FTM
2
Pts
13
FGM
5
3FGM
0
FTM
3
Players Mentioned
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/ Men's BasketballStep Into My Office with Ritchie McKay
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