SPARTANBURG, S.C. – With a chance to move into first place in the Conference Carolinas Northwest Division, the Converse University men's basketball team left no doubt as they crushed Belmont Abbey 77-59 on Wednesday night inside the Weisiger Center.
With the win Converse improves to 13-7 overall and 6-5 in Conference Carolinas play. Converse is now 3-1 in Northwest Division play and sit atop the standings, following a Lees-McRae loss to King last night. Belmont Abbey falls to 8-13 overall and 6-5 in Conference Carolinas action. Despite winning the first meeting against the Valkyries, the Crusaders are now in second place in the Northwest Division with a 2-2 record.
CJ Jamison led the Valkyries with a 28-point effort, the graduate student guard shot an efficient 8-12 from the field, 4-7 from beyond the arch and 8-9 from the free throw line. Meanwhile
Uzziah Dawkins finished second on the team with 21-points and
Ben Jones contributed a season high 8-points in the win on Wednesday night.
First Half Notes:
- Belmont Abbey won the opening tip-off and DJ Holloway scored the opening points of the game. The Crusaders 2-0 advantage lasted just over one minute of game time before Malcolm Morgan scored the first points of the game for Converse.
- The Valkyries never looked back as they opened the game on an 8-2 run. With 11:54 to play in the half, Jones connected on his first shot of the game and Converse held a 12-5 advantage.
- Belmont Abbey started to make run on their next possession down the court as they connected on a three-pointer from Kyle Frazier. A few possessions later and Frazier scored again and the Crusaders were back with a trio of points down 13-10.
- Converse was not fazed by the Crusaders run, the Valkyries countered with a run of their own and quickly built back up a double-digit lead. At the 6:29 mark of the first half, Jamison connected on a pair of free throws and Converse led 26-15.
- Converse led by as many as 15 on multiple occasions in the opening half. The Valkyries went into the halftime intermission up 36-24.
- The Valkyries shot 54 percent in the opening half, 50 percent from the three-point line and 71 percent from the free throw line.
Second Half Notes:
- At the start of the second half the Valkyries scored on their first two possessions of the period.
- With 16:00 to play in the game Frazier made a fastbreak jumper and the Valkyries lead had dwindled down to a 42-32 advantage. A media timeout helped the Valkyries refocus as Jamison converted a four-point play after he was fouled while making a three-pointer.
- At the 11:17 mark in the half, Joel Pullen found Kervens Yacinthe for a three-pointer. The made basket gave Converse their largest lead of the game at 56-36.
- Converse made sure to keep their foot on the offensive pedal as the Crusaders never got within single-digits of the Valkyries lead.
- Converse outscored Belmont Abbey 41-35 in the second half. The Valkyries shot 55 percent from the field, 36 percent from the field and 83 percent from the free throw line.
Stat Leaders:
Points – Jamison (28), Dawkins (21)
Rebounds – Burgess III (5), Jamison (4), Dawkins (4), Morgan (4)
Assists – Dawkins (5), Burgess III (5), Pullen (4)
Next Up:
The men's basketball team will stay at home this weekend when they host Barton on Saturday afternoon. Tip-off is slate for 4:00 p.m. inside the Weisiger Center.
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