NEWBERRY, S.C. – The Converse University men's basketball team defeated Newbery 78-58 on Wednesday night in Eleazer Arena.
With the win the Valkyries improve to 3-0 on the season and continue the best start in program history. Meanwhile, Newberry falls to 0-2 on the season.
Uzziah Dawkins led the team with 16 points,
CJ Jamison added 14 points and
Earl Burgess III contributed 13 points off the bench. Jamison finished with a team best 9 rebounds, while
Edoardo Buffo had a team high 5 assists in the win.
First Half Notes:
- Newberry won the opening tipoff and missed the first shot of the game, in fact both teams got off to a slow start offensively as neither side was able to get into an early shooting rhythm.
- Finally, with 18:06 to play in the opening half, Joel Pullen drove to the basket and scored the first points of the game for either side.
- The Wolves scored their points off a pair of free throws from Booker Cusaac. Moments later, CJ Jamison knocked down back-to-back three pointers to give the Valkyries an 8-2 lead over the Wolves.
- Coming out of the media timeout Uzziah Dawkins hit a three pointer and the Valkyries led 11-2 midway through the first half. Newberry ended their scoring drought with a Cusaac basket with 13:17 to play in the half.
- With 12:49 to play Earl Burgess III made a layup to give Converse a 17-6 lead, moments later Malcolm Morgan hit a three pointer giving Converse a 20-8 advantage.
- Over the next six minutes of game time the Valkyries continued to build upon their lead and eventually led 33-13 with 6:36 to play.
- Converse held the final possession of the first half and Dawkins nailed a three pointer from the top of the arch as time expired. The Valkyries went into the halftime break with a 46-21 lead.
- Converse shot 61 percent from the field, 46 percent from three point range and 100 percent from the free throw line.
Second Half Notes:
- Coming out of the halftime break, Buffo scored the first points of the second half on a midrange jumper. The Valkyries started the second half on a 5-0 run against the Wolves and increased their lead to 52-21.
- Newberry countered with a 9-2 spurt against the Valkyries offense to close the gap to 56-32. Going into the under 12 media timeout the Valkyries began to find their offensive rhythm again and led 63-40 following a Jamison three-pointer.
- With 6:05 to play the Valkyries held a 69-45 advantage over the Wolves. Both teams held the other offense in check as Converse continued to hold a 73-53 lead over Newberry.
- Both teams hit the 10 foul limit with 2:51 to play in the game. The Valkyries hit their free throws down the stretch and picked up their third win of the season.
- Converse shot 35 percent in the second half, 15 percent from three point range and 66 percent from the free throw line.
Stat Leaders:
Points – Dawkins (16), Jamison (14), Burgess III (13)
Rebounds – Jamison (9),
Leo Da Campo (7)
Assists – Buffo (5), Pullen (4)
Next Up:
The men's basketball team will be back at home this Saturday afternoon as they face off against Morris in the home opener. Tip-off is set for a 4:00 p.m. start time inside the Weisiger Center.
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