Saturday, November 7
Lynchburg, Va.
2:00 PM ET
Liberty University
1-1,0-0CUSA
113
vs
54
Boyce
0-1
| Team | 1 | 2 | F |
|---|---|---|---|
| Boyce | 19 | 35 | 54 |
| Liberty | 51 | 62 | 113 |
11/7/2026 5:17:00 PM | Men's Basketball
LYNCHBURG, Va. – Liberty downed Boyce 113-54 in its 2026-27 home opener, Saturday afternoon at Liberty Arena.
Five Flames scored in double figures, led by a game-high 21 points from junior Cooper Campbell, who also matched a game high with six assists. Cobi Campbell scored 18 points off the bench and was joined in double figures by Zander Carter (14 points, seven rebounds, six assists), Eli Sancomb (14 points, nine rebounds, five assists) and Ryan Jones Jr. (career-high 11 points).
Liberty picks up its first win of the year, improving to 1-1. Boyce, playing its first game of the year, maintains its 0-0 record after counting this afternoon's contest as an exhibition. The Flames improve to 14-0 in home openers under head coach Ritchie McKay.
Box Score Highlights
Liberty Individuals: Cooper Campbell 21 points, 8-11 FG, 6 assists, 3 steals; Cobi Campbell 18 points, 7-11 FG, 3 assists; Zander Carter 14 points, 6-8 FG, 7 rebounds, 6 assists; Eli Sancomb 14 points, 6-10 FG, 9 rebounds, 5 assists, 2 steals; Ryan Jones Jr. 11 points, 3-5 3FG, 5 rebounds; Matthew Shelton 9 points, 4-5 FG; Reece Davidson 8 points, 4-5 FG, 5 rebounds; Brady Kester 6 points, 3-3 FG
Boyce Individuals: Boston Boike 17 points, 5-8 3FG; Andrew Thomas 9 points, 10 rebounds, 3 assists, 2 blocks; Josh Sangalli 9 points, 3 assists
Key Team Stats: Liberty shot 62.2 percent (46-of-74) for the game, including a 65 percent mark (26-of-40) in the second half. This is the first time the Flames have shot 60 percent in a game since connecting on 61.5 percent of its shots at Middle Tennessee on Jan. 29. The Flames shot 48.4 percent (15-of-31) from three-point territory, and the Bulldogs shot 32.1 percent (9-of-28) from deep.
Liberty held a 45-30 rebounding advantage and dominated in points in the paint (58-12), bench points (49-14), points off turnovers (27-4), fast break points (33-0) and second chance points (14-9). The Flames dished out 24 assists, compared to 11 for the Bulldogs. Liberty never trailed, leading for all but 14 seconds of the game.
Turning Point
Liberty opened the game on a 20-2 run over the opening 8:39 to take control of the game. Seven different Flames scored in that stretch, with Zander Carter's layup at the 11:21 mark pushing the advantage to 18 points. The Flames pushed the advantage to 32, 51-19, at the break. Carter led the way with 11 points on a perfect 5-of-5 from the floor, while Eli Sancomb had 10 points and six boards in the opening 20 minutes.
Liberty scored 62 of its 113 points in the second half, with 10 different Flames scoring in the stanza. Cooper and Cobi Campbell both contributed 12 points in the second half.
Key Stats & Notes
Up Next
Liberty will play its next game at home, taking on NC Central (0-1/2) on Friday evening at 7:30 p.m. at Liberty Arena.
The Flames and Eagles will be squaring off for the second time ever and first since Nov. 14, 2022. Liberty topped NC Central 79-63 at Liberty Arena. Darius McGhee scored a game-high 27 points.
Five Flames scored in double figures, led by a game-high 21 points from junior Cooper Campbell, who also matched a game high with six assists. Cobi Campbell scored 18 points off the bench and was joined in double figures by Zander Carter (14 points, seven rebounds, six assists), Eli Sancomb (14 points, nine rebounds, five assists) and Ryan Jones Jr. (career-high 11 points).
Liberty picks up its first win of the year, improving to 1-1. Boyce, playing its first game of the year, maintains its 0-0 record after counting this afternoon's contest as an exhibition. The Flames improve to 14-0 in home openers under head coach Ritchie McKay.
Box Score Highlights
Liberty Individuals: Cooper Campbell 21 points, 8-11 FG, 6 assists, 3 steals; Cobi Campbell 18 points, 7-11 FG, 3 assists; Zander Carter 14 points, 6-8 FG, 7 rebounds, 6 assists; Eli Sancomb 14 points, 6-10 FG, 9 rebounds, 5 assists, 2 steals; Ryan Jones Jr. 11 points, 3-5 3FG, 5 rebounds; Matthew Shelton 9 points, 4-5 FG; Reece Davidson 8 points, 4-5 FG, 5 rebounds; Brady Kester 6 points, 3-3 FG
Boyce Individuals: Boston Boike 17 points, 5-8 3FG; Andrew Thomas 9 points, 10 rebounds, 3 assists, 2 blocks; Josh Sangalli 9 points, 3 assists
Key Team Stats: Liberty shot 62.2 percent (46-of-74) for the game, including a 65 percent mark (26-of-40) in the second half. This is the first time the Flames have shot 60 percent in a game since connecting on 61.5 percent of its shots at Middle Tennessee on Jan. 29. The Flames shot 48.4 percent (15-of-31) from three-point territory, and the Bulldogs shot 32.1 percent (9-of-28) from deep.
Liberty held a 45-30 rebounding advantage and dominated in points in the paint (58-12), bench points (49-14), points off turnovers (27-4), fast break points (33-0) and second chance points (14-9). The Flames dished out 24 assists, compared to 11 for the Bulldogs. Liberty never trailed, leading for all but 14 seconds of the game.
Turning Point
Liberty opened the game on a 20-2 run over the opening 8:39 to take control of the game. Seven different Flames scored in that stretch, with Zander Carter's layup at the 11:21 mark pushing the advantage to 18 points. The Flames pushed the advantage to 32, 51-19, at the break. Carter led the way with 11 points on a perfect 5-of-5 from the floor, while Eli Sancomb had 10 points and six boards in the opening 20 minutes.
Liberty scored 62 of its 113 points in the second half, with 10 different Flames scoring in the stanza. Cooper and Cobi Campbell both contributed 12 points in the second half.
Key Stats & Notes
- Cooper Campbell's 20-point game was his first in a Liberty uniform and fifth of his career. He led all Flames in the +/- department at +44. Cobi Campbell's 18-point effort was his highest scoring output since totaling a career-high 30 points against Southern Miss on Jan. 14 while at Troy.
- Zander Carter's six assists are a new career high. Carter is averaging 17.5 points, 6.5 rebounds and 2.5 steals in two games.
- Eli Sancomb led Liberty with nine rebounds and added 14 points along with six assists. The freshman guard is averaging 12.0 ppg, 7.5 rpg, 4.5 apg and 1.5 spg.
- Eli Herbert made his first collegiate start today. The duo of Herbert and Eli Sancomb both started today. They are the first pair of Liberty freshmen to start a game since Joseph Venzant and Brody Peebles started against Boyce on Dec. 31, 2021.
- Liberty's 113 points are its most since the Flames scored 124 points (124-50) at home, a Liberty Arena record, versus St. Andrews on Dec. 17, 2024.
- The Flames improve to 3-0 all-time versus Boyce, winning by an average margin of 44 points.
- Liberty Men's Basketball Head Coach Ritchie McKay earned his 299th victory with the Flames this afternoon and is one away from 300. McKay is the winningest coach in program history.
- Eleven of twelve Flames who saw playing time today entered the scoring column.
- Freshman Reece Davidson finished the day with eight points and five rebounds.
- Junior Brady Kester scored a career-high six points on a perfect 3-of-3 shooting in only 4:51 of action.
- This afternoon's attendance of 3,832 was the most in a Liberty home opener since the 2022-23 season.
Up Next
Liberty will play its next game at home, taking on NC Central (0-1/2) on Friday evening at 7:30 p.m. at Liberty Arena.
The Flames and Eagles will be squaring off for the second time ever and first since Nov. 14, 2022. Liberty topped NC Central 79-63 at Liberty Arena. Darius McGhee scored a game-high 27 points.
Players Mentioned
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/ Men's BasketballTeam Stats
Boyce
Lib
FG%
.297
.622
3FG%
.321
.484
FT%
.636
.750
RB
30
45
TO
17
7
STL
4
12
Game Leaders
Pts
21
FGM
8
3FGM
3
FTM
2
Pts
18
FGM
7
3FGM
3
FTM
1
Pts
14
FGM
6
3FGM
2
FTM
0
Pts
14
FGM
6
3FGM
1
FTM
1
Sunday, November 08
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