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Kyle Monk Shoots against Emmanuel
69
Francis Marion FMU 3-8,1-3 Conference Carolinas
92
Winner Converse Conv 3-5,2-2 Conference Carolinas
Francis Marion FMU
3-8,1-3 Conference Carolinas
69
Final
92
Converse Conv
3-5,2-2 Conference Carolinas
Winner
Score By Periods
Team 1 2 F
Francis Marion FMU 34 35 69
Converse Conv 49 43 92

Game Recap: Men's Basketball |

Valkyries Power Past Patriots

SPARTANBURG S.C. – The Converse University men's basketball team never trailed on Tuesday night, as they defeated the Francis Marion Patriots 92-69 inside the Weisiger Center.
 
With the victory, the Valkyries are officially on their first winning streak of the 2024-25 basketball season. Converse is now 3-5 overall and 2-2 in Conference Carolinas action, meanwhile, Francis Marion drops to 3-8 overall and 1-3 in Conference Carolinas play. Tuesday nights victory also marked the first time the Valkyries have scored 90 or more points in back-to-back wins.
 
Kyle Monk led the Valkyries offense on Tuesday night, as the junior finished the match with a season high 23-points against the Patriots. Jay Mitchell came off the bench to score a season high 17-points, Sigurd Lorange was third on the team with 13-points, and Earl Burgess III finished the evening with 12-points. Burgess III had a great night stuffing the stat sheet for the Valkyries, the Spartanburg native ended the night as the leading rebounder (8) and he led the team in assists (6). Monk finished second on the team with seven rebounds, Edoardo Buffo finished third on the team with five rebounds, while Isac Ahnstrand finished with five assists on the evening.

First Half Notes:
  • Converse came out firing on the offensive end as they opened the game on a 26-5 run. The Valkyries shot 8-for-11 from beyond the arch in the opening eight minutes of game time.
  • Francis Marion was forced to use a pair of timeouts to try and slow down the Valkyries offense in the first 10 minutes of the half.
  • The Patriots began slowing down the Valkyries offense by getting Converse in foul trouble early in the period.
  • Francis Marion used the free throw line almost exclusively in the opening half to get back in the match against the Valkyries.
  • With 3:52 to play in the half, Francis Marion concluded a 20-9 run to close the gap within 10-points of Converse.
  • The Valkyries with stood the run and ended the half on a 14-9 run against the Patriots. Converse held a 49-34 advantage going into the locker room break.
  • The Valkyries had a historical opening half against the Patriots, Converse shot 64 percent from the field, 58 percent from three-point range, and 63 percent from the free throw line.
  • The Valkyries 10 three-pointers were the most ever in an opening half in program history, and it is just the third time overall the Valkyries have recorded at least 10 three-pointers in either half.  
Second Half Notes:
  • Coming out of the halftime break, Francis Marion used an 8-0 run to take the early momentum away from the Valkyries.
  • Converse was forced to use an early timeout to stop the Francis Marion run, as the Valkyries clung to a 49-42 lead.
  • The timeout proved to be pivotal as the Valkyries got the momentum back off a Jay Mitchell dunk and extended their lead back to 11-points.
  • The back-and-forth continued between the two teams, and with 15:02 to play in the contest Francis Marion had the Valkyries lead back down to single digits at 53-47.
  • With 13:48 to play in the game, Lorange found Mitchell for a fastbreak three-pointer to make the score 56-47 in the Valkyries favor. The made basket jump started a 10-run by the Valkyries offense over the next 90 seconds of game time.
  • Once again, the Patriots looked to chip away at the Valkyries 16-point advantage, and eventually whittled the score down to an eight-point deficit with 8:11 to play.
  • Despite the Patriots best efforts, the Valkyries were able to put the game away with a 10-2 run at the 5:11 mark of the second half. Burgess III started the run with a tip-in layup and it was highlighted by a Monk dunk at the end.
  • With 2:18 to play Lorange went to the line to ice the game away up 81-63. Following the first made free throw, Horaces Jacques Jr., was assessed not one but two technical fouls from the officials. Lorange went five-for-6 from the line and the Valkyries held an 86-63 lead.
  • Lorange and Monk hit back-to-back three-pointers to conclude the scoring for the Valkyries, while Ramez Zayed scored the final bucket for Francis Marion.
  • Converse outscored Francis Marion 43-35 in the second half, shooting 41 percent from the field, 29 percent from three-point range, and 70 percent from the free throw line.
Stat Leaders:
Points – Monk (23), Mitchell (17), Lorange (13), Burgess III (12)
Rebounds – Burgess III (8), Monk (7), Buffo (5)
Assists – Burgess III (6), Ahnstrand (5)

Next Up:
The men's basketball team will be back in action against Augusta on Saturday, December 21st. Tip-off is slated for 4:00 p.m. inside the Weisiger Center.
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