Friday, November 13
Lynchburg, Va.
7:30 PM ET
Liberty University
2-1,0-0CUSA
74
vs
66
NC Central
0-4,0-0MEAC
| Team | 1 | 2 | F |
|---|---|---|---|
| N.C. Central | 34 | 32 | 66 |
| Liberty | 40 | 34 | 74 |
11/13/2026 11:15:00 PM | Men's Basketball
LYNCHBURG, Va. – The Liberty Flames held off the NC Central Eagles 74-66 on Friday night at Liberty Arena to pick up their second consecutive home win.
Liberty freshman Eli Sancomb posted a 20-point, 10-rebound double-double effort. Flames head coach Ritchie McKay earned victory No. 300 for his Liberty career tonight.
The Flames push their record to 2-1 on the young season, while the Eagles (0-4) are still in search of their first win. Sancomb (20 points), Zander Carter (13 points) and Cooper Campbell (12 points) combined for 45 of Liberty's 74 points on the night. Liberty also received a strong contribution from its bench tonight, with Torr Sorensen leading the way with a career-high eight points.
Box Score Highlights
Liberty Individuals: Eli Sancomb 20 points, 8-13 FG, 3-4 3FG, 10 rebounds, 4 assists, 1 steal; Zander Carter 13 points, 4 rebounds, 4 assists, 2 steals, 2 blocks; Cooper Campbell 12 points, 4 rebounds, 3 assists; Torr Sorensen 8 points, 3-3 FG, 2-2 3FG, 2 rebounds; Eli Herbert 7 points, 3 rebounds
NC Central Individuals: Cristian Sanon 14 points, 4 rebounds, Tyler Mason 13 points, 5-6 FT, 9 rebounds, 2 blocks; Ryan Archey 12 points, 3 rebounds
Key Team Stats: Liberty finished the night at just under 50 percent, shooting 49.1 percent (27-of-55) from the field. The Flames knocked down 10 threes on 24 attempts (41.7 percent). NC Central shot 47.2 percent (25-of-53) for the game but only 35.7 percent (5-of-14) from deep. Both teams struggled from the free throw line, with Liberty shooting 55.6 percent (10-of-18) and NC Central coming in at 64.7 percent (11-of-17). The Flames assisted on 18 of their 27 made field goals, while the Eagles had 11 assists on 25 makes. NC Central held the edge in rebounding by one, 33-32. Liberty held a narrow edge in points in the paint (34-32) and points off turnovers (8-5). NC Central held the advantage in second chance points (11-10) and bench points (25-22). The Flames turned the ball over only seven times, and the Eagles committed eight miscues. Liberty led for 35:52, and NC Central led for 2:54.
Turning Point
Liberty led by six at the break, 40-34, and the Flames pushed the lead to 12 (56-44) with 10:50 remaining following a 7-0 run. During that spurt, Eli Herbert scored a layup, Torr Sorensen buried a three and Zander Carter scored through contact.
NC Central crept back in the game with a quick 9-0 burst of its own, capped off by a Jozohn Price triple at the 9:24 mark to trim the home lead to 56-52. Liberty responded by scoring 12 of the next 18 points to push the lead back up to double digits, 68-58, with 4:20 to go. Following a basket from the Eagles, Carter found Cooper Campbell in the corner for a triple to extend the lead to 71-60 with 2:20 on the clock.
Key Stats & Notes
Up Next
The Flames will be back in action on Tuesday evening in a neutral site game against Southern Illinois (2-1), played at Queens' Curry Arena in Charlotte, N.C. Game time is 6 p.m. in what will be the first-ever meeting on the hardwood between the two schools.
Liberty will play its next six games away from home before returning to Lynchburg to face Christendom, Dec. 5.
Liberty freshman Eli Sancomb posted a 20-point, 10-rebound double-double effort. Flames head coach Ritchie McKay earned victory No. 300 for his Liberty career tonight.
The Flames push their record to 2-1 on the young season, while the Eagles (0-4) are still in search of their first win. Sancomb (20 points), Zander Carter (13 points) and Cooper Campbell (12 points) combined for 45 of Liberty's 74 points on the night. Liberty also received a strong contribution from its bench tonight, with Torr Sorensen leading the way with a career-high eight points.
Box Score Highlights
Liberty Individuals: Eli Sancomb 20 points, 8-13 FG, 3-4 3FG, 10 rebounds, 4 assists, 1 steal; Zander Carter 13 points, 4 rebounds, 4 assists, 2 steals, 2 blocks; Cooper Campbell 12 points, 4 rebounds, 3 assists; Torr Sorensen 8 points, 3-3 FG, 2-2 3FG, 2 rebounds; Eli Herbert 7 points, 3 rebounds
NC Central Individuals: Cristian Sanon 14 points, 4 rebounds, Tyler Mason 13 points, 5-6 FT, 9 rebounds, 2 blocks; Ryan Archey 12 points, 3 rebounds
Key Team Stats: Liberty finished the night at just under 50 percent, shooting 49.1 percent (27-of-55) from the field. The Flames knocked down 10 threes on 24 attempts (41.7 percent). NC Central shot 47.2 percent (25-of-53) for the game but only 35.7 percent (5-of-14) from deep. Both teams struggled from the free throw line, with Liberty shooting 55.6 percent (10-of-18) and NC Central coming in at 64.7 percent (11-of-17). The Flames assisted on 18 of their 27 made field goals, while the Eagles had 11 assists on 25 makes. NC Central held the edge in rebounding by one, 33-32. Liberty held a narrow edge in points in the paint (34-32) and points off turnovers (8-5). NC Central held the advantage in second chance points (11-10) and bench points (25-22). The Flames turned the ball over only seven times, and the Eagles committed eight miscues. Liberty led for 35:52, and NC Central led for 2:54.
Turning Point
Liberty led by six at the break, 40-34, and the Flames pushed the lead to 12 (56-44) with 10:50 remaining following a 7-0 run. During that spurt, Eli Herbert scored a layup, Torr Sorensen buried a three and Zander Carter scored through contact.
NC Central crept back in the game with a quick 9-0 burst of its own, capped off by a Jozohn Price triple at the 9:24 mark to trim the home lead to 56-52. Liberty responded by scoring 12 of the next 18 points to push the lead back up to double digits, 68-58, with 4:20 to go. Following a basket from the Eagles, Carter found Cooper Campbell in the corner for a triple to extend the lead to 71-60 with 2:20 on the clock.
Key Stats & Notes
- Eli Sancomb is the first Liberty freshman to post a double-double since Curtis Blair III had a 19-point, 12-rebound double-double as a redshirt freshman against St. Andrews on Dec. 17, 2024.
- Sancomb is the Flames freshman to score 20 or more points in a game since Colin Porter had 25 points against Eastern Kentucky on March 2, 2023. Sancomb is averaging 14.7 ppg, a team-best 8.3 rpg and a team-high 4.3 apg.
- Liberty Men's Basketball Head Coach Ritchie McKay's first win with the Flames was a 64-49 result over Coker on Nov. 13, 2007 at the Vines Center. McKay has 465 career victories as a college head coach, 300 of which have come here at Liberty. In his 14th season at the helm, McKay is 300-143 all-time with the Flames.
- Sophomore Zander Carter continued his strong start to the year with a 13-point effort, his third straight game in double figures, and a team-best +13. Carter had one game in double figures all of last year. The guard is averaging a team-best 16.0 ppg through three contests along with 5.7 rpg, 3.7 apg and 2.3 spg.
- Torr Sorensen finished with eight points on a perfect 3-of-3 shooting in only seven minutes of action. Sorensen, whose previous career high was five points against Carolina University nearly a year ago (Nov. 17, 2025) was a +7 in his limited action.
- Liberty is 2-0 all-time against NC Central after tonight's triumph. Liberty has won 18 straight contests against MEAC schools, a streak which started during the 2017-18 campaign.
- The Flames are 23-2 when leading at half since start of 2025-26 season.
Up Next
The Flames will be back in action on Tuesday evening in a neutral site game against Southern Illinois (2-1), played at Queens' Curry Arena in Charlotte, N.C. Game time is 6 p.m. in what will be the first-ever meeting on the hardwood between the two schools.
Liberty will play its next six games away from home before returning to Lynchburg to face Christendom, Dec. 5.
Three hundred with the Flames. ?? https://t.co/nfIibuqZSK
— Liberty Men's Basketball (@LibertyMBB) November 14, 2026
Players Mentioned
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/ Men's Basketball
G
/ Men's Basketball
G
/ Men's Basketball
G
/ Men's Basketball
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/ Men's Basketball
F
/ Men's BasketballTeam Stats
NCCU
Lib
FG%
.472
.491
3FG%
.357
.417
FT%
.647
.556
RB
33
32
TO
8
7
STL
4
6
Game Leaders
Pts
20
FGM
8
3FGM
3
FTM
1
Pts
13
FGM
5
3FGM
0
FTM
3
Pts
12
FGM
4
3FGM
3
FTM
1
Pts
8
FGM
3
3FGM
2
FTM
0
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