Tuesday, December 15
Lynchburg, Va.
7:00 PM
Liberty University
70
vs
45
Shawnee State
Flames Victorious Over Bears, 70-45
12/15/2009 12:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
Coming off a high-scoring affair against Kentucky Christian on Saturday, the Liberty men's basketball team (6-6, 1-1 Big South) returned to the court on Tuesday for fourth game of its five-game homestand, squaring off with Shawnee State. The Bears looked to hang with Liberty in the opening half, but the Flames distanced themselves from the visitors, pulling out a 70-45 victory inside the Vines Center.
After both teams only posting a made free throw in the opening three minutes, Patrick Konan kick started the offense for Liberty with two-straight baskets, giving the Flames an early 5-1 lead at 16:16.
Shawnee State then responded by going on an 8-0 run with baskets from Keelyn Franklin, Mark Brant and Tyler Morgan to take a 9-5 lead at 13:47.
Evan Gordon countered with an old-fashioned three-point play at 13:12, to trim the deficit to one, making it a 9-8 contest in favor of Shawnee State.
Following a layup from Morgan, the Flames posted six-unanswered points to regain the edge, 13-11 at 12:01.
A stalemate ensued at 11:40, with a trio of ties taking place over the next minute and a half, eventually making it 17-17 at 10:10.
The Flames ended the deadlock, going on a 5-0 spurt capped off by a Jeremy Anderson trey to give Liberty a 22-17 advantage with 8:10 remaining in the half.
Three-pointers continued to hit the mark for the Flames, as Gordon nailed a downtown dagger, giving the home team an 11-point, 29-18 lead with 6:20 left in the half.
Antwan Burrus maintained Liberty's 11-point advantage with a jumper in the paint 33 seconds before the close of the opening 20 minutes, sending the Flames into the locker room with a 34-23 lead at halftime.
Gordon led all scorers at the half with eight points and six rebounds. Konan and Anderson each finished with six tallies, while McMasters matched Gordon's performance on the glass with six boards. Morgan led the way for Bears with six points, followed by Tim Russell and Franklin who each contributed four.
The Flames hit 13-of-32 shots (40.6 percent) from the field, while holding Shawnee State to 32.0 percent (8-of-25 shooting). Points off turnovers played a role in Liberty's first-half advantage, as the Flames capitalized on the Bears' miscues, outscoring the visitors 13-4.
The Bears made the first mark in the second half courtesy of a Matt Skaggs layup, making it 34-25 at 19:11.
Liberty lengthened its distance to 15 just 1:32 later, when Konan hit a jumper to put the Flames up 40-25.
After a Bears basket, both squads went scoreless for the nearly four minutes, until Chris Perez broke the ice with a layup at 13:26 to maintain Liberty's 15-point advantage, 42-27.
The Bears cut the Liberty lead to 12 at 12:47 with a three-pointer from Franklin to make it 42-30. However, Liberty began increasing its distance once again during the proceeding 2:33, stretching it out to 19 thanks to a Perez, putting Liberty up 51-32.
Liberty went on to outscore the Bears 19-13 in the latter part of the second half, ultimately taking the contest 70-45. The Flames improve to 6-6 on the season with the win, while Shawnee State falls to 3-9.
Gordon and Konan each scored a game high 12 points in the contest, pulling down seven and nine boards respectively. Perez rounded out Liberty's top scorers, netting 10 tallies. Skaggs and Tyler finished with 11 and 10 points, with Tyler tying Konan's mark in rebounds with nine.
Liberty upped its shooting stroke in the second half, hitting 14-of-28 (50.0 percent) from the field in the second half, finishing with a field goal percentage of 45.0 percent (27-of-60 shooting). At the opposite end of the floor, the Flames held the Bears to 28.6 percent from the field (18-of-63) on the night.
Liberty's five-game homestand ends this Saturday against Houghton. The matchup marks the second meeting between the Flames and the Highlanders, with Liberty taking the previous contest on Nov. 25, 2006, 92-46. Tipoff for Saturday's game is set for 1 p.m.
After both teams only posting a made free throw in the opening three minutes, Patrick Konan kick started the offense for Liberty with two-straight baskets, giving the Flames an early 5-1 lead at 16:16.
Shawnee State then responded by going on an 8-0 run with baskets from Keelyn Franklin, Mark Brant and Tyler Morgan to take a 9-5 lead at 13:47.
Evan Gordon countered with an old-fashioned three-point play at 13:12, to trim the deficit to one, making it a 9-8 contest in favor of Shawnee State.
Following a layup from Morgan, the Flames posted six-unanswered points to regain the edge, 13-11 at 12:01.
A stalemate ensued at 11:40, with a trio of ties taking place over the next minute and a half, eventually making it 17-17 at 10:10.
The Flames ended the deadlock, going on a 5-0 spurt capped off by a Jeremy Anderson trey to give Liberty a 22-17 advantage with 8:10 remaining in the half.
Three-pointers continued to hit the mark for the Flames, as Gordon nailed a downtown dagger, giving the home team an 11-point, 29-18 lead with 6:20 left in the half.
Antwan Burrus maintained Liberty's 11-point advantage with a jumper in the paint 33 seconds before the close of the opening 20 minutes, sending the Flames into the locker room with a 34-23 lead at halftime.
Gordon led all scorers at the half with eight points and six rebounds. Konan and Anderson each finished with six tallies, while McMasters matched Gordon's performance on the glass with six boards. Morgan led the way for Bears with six points, followed by Tim Russell and Franklin who each contributed four.
The Flames hit 13-of-32 shots (40.6 percent) from the field, while holding Shawnee State to 32.0 percent (8-of-25 shooting). Points off turnovers played a role in Liberty's first-half advantage, as the Flames capitalized on the Bears' miscues, outscoring the visitors 13-4.
The Bears made the first mark in the second half courtesy of a Matt Skaggs layup, making it 34-25 at 19:11.
Liberty lengthened its distance to 15 just 1:32 later, when Konan hit a jumper to put the Flames up 40-25.
After a Bears basket, both squads went scoreless for the nearly four minutes, until Chris Perez broke the ice with a layup at 13:26 to maintain Liberty's 15-point advantage, 42-27.
The Bears cut the Liberty lead to 12 at 12:47 with a three-pointer from Franklin to make it 42-30. However, Liberty began increasing its distance once again during the proceeding 2:33, stretching it out to 19 thanks to a Perez, putting Liberty up 51-32.
Liberty went on to outscore the Bears 19-13 in the latter part of the second half, ultimately taking the contest 70-45. The Flames improve to 6-6 on the season with the win, while Shawnee State falls to 3-9.
Gordon and Konan each scored a game high 12 points in the contest, pulling down seven and nine boards respectively. Perez rounded out Liberty's top scorers, netting 10 tallies. Skaggs and Tyler finished with 11 and 10 points, with Tyler tying Konan's mark in rebounds with nine.
Liberty upped its shooting stroke in the second half, hitting 14-of-28 (50.0 percent) from the field in the second half, finishing with a field goal percentage of 45.0 percent (27-of-60 shooting). At the opposite end of the floor, the Flames held the Bears to 28.6 percent from the field (18-of-63) on the night.
Liberty's five-game homestand ends this Saturday against Houghton. The matchup marks the second meeting between the Flames and the Highlanders, with Liberty taking the previous contest on Nov. 25, 2006, 92-46. Tipoff for Saturday's game is set for 1 p.m.
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