MBB: TAKING THE HEAT

CU SIZZLES IN NEAR-UPSET OF NATION'S 2nd-RANKED TEAM

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The Concord men's basketball team faced one of the hottest teams in the country on Saturday, and came out showing they can stand the heat.

West Liberty, the 2nd-ranked team in the nation, went into the afternoon contest in Athens Carter Center on a 16-game winning streak.  The Hilltoppers had also won 26 consecutive conference road games, part of a 52-game WVIAC winning streak that included a 29-point home win over CU last November 19. 

WLU escaped with its streaks intact, holding off the Mountain Lions 103-98 in front of a noisy, high-energy crowd at the Carter Center.  The game, which featured two of the top four scoring teams in the nation, saw six ties and 11 lead changes.

West Liberty bolted out to an early 13-4 lead and held a 24-17 advantage eight minutes after tipoff.  Concord reeled off eight straight points to take its first lead at 25-24 midway through the 1st half. 
The Hilltoppers would move ahead 48-40 with 2:38 before the break before CU caught fire again.  The Mountain Lions closed out the half with nine unanswered points, the last seven from Javaughn Manuel, to take a 49-48 lead into the break.

The visitors opened the 2nd half with four straight points.  But Concord sizzled again, sparking the crowd with a 12-2 run to go ahead 61-54 with 17:23 to play.

The Mountain Lions held the lead until a three-pointer by Shawn Dyer put WLU in front 78-77 with 10:17 to go.  The Hilltoppers would move out to an eight-point edge at 93-85 with 5:12, bringing a hush to the Carter Center throng.

The decibel level rose again as Concord put together another run.  A jumper by Corey Neeley pulled the Mountain Lions within 97-96 with 1:05 left, but turnovers on CU's next possessions would short-circuit the upset bid.

West Liberty, the nation's highest-scoring team, shot .500 (36-72) from the field, including .538 (7-13) from three-point range.  They also attempted 30 free throws, making 24, while CU was 12-16 from the line.

Concord, the nation's 4th-leading scoring team, blistered the WLU defense by shooting .591 (39-66) from the field. 

Javaughn Manuel paced CU with 26 points, shooting 10-16 from the floor.  Cory Willard sank four of seven three-point shots on his way to 20 points.  Romel Kemp posted 17 points and seven rebounds, while Neeley finished with 11 points, five assists and four rebounds.

Hester led West Liberty (19-1, 14-0) with a double-double of 29 points and 14 rebounds.

BOXSCORE/PLAY-BY-PLAY

Up next for Concord (10-8, 7-7) is a WVIAC contest against West Virginia Wesleyan at the Carter Center on Wednesday, February 1.  Tip-off is scheduled for 7:30 pm, or a minimum of 20 minutes after the conclusion of the CU-WVWC women's game, which is set to start at 5:30.

Both of Wednesday's game will be broadcast on ESPN Radio 102.3 The Ticket (WMTD, Hinton/Princeton/Beckley). 
Link's to Concord's Live Stats and streaming video, and The Ticket's audio webcast, can be found on men's basketball homepage here on www.cumountainlions.com.


(statistics provided by CU SID GA Becky Brouse)

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