ATHENS, W.Va. – Back-to-back three-pointers from junior guard
Ethan Heller with 9:04 remaining gave the Concord University men's basketball team a lead it would not relinquish down the stretch as they defeated Mercer County rival Bluefield State, 92-87, Tuesday night at the Carter Center.
The Mountain Lions (1-2) gave up a 54-41 halftime lead as BSC (0-3) took a 68-65 lead at the 10:05 mark. However, a dunk from senior forward
Da'Vion Moore—one of five in the game for him—followed by consecutive three-pointers by Heller pushed Concord up 73-68.
Concord was never able to slip away from the Big Blues as the biggest lead it had was a six-point advantage over the final nine minutes.
Clinging to an 87-86 lead, Heller his final of three three-pointers with 1:01 left push the Mountain Lions ahead by two possessions. After Bluefield State made 1-of-2 foul shots, CU put an exclamation point on a frantic ending with another Moore dunk with 44 seconds left.
Concord built a lead as big as 18 points in the first half, 49-31, with 2:07 remaining in the opening half after a triple from senior guard
Brandon Kennedy before settling for a 13-point halftime margin.
The CU bench was pivotal in Tuesday night's win as it scored 28 points, led by 11 points from sophomore guard
Jordan Wooden—all in the first half. Fellow sophomore guard
Dorian Groggs pitched in seven points in six minutes of action.
Five different players finished in double figures led by Moore's career-high 20 points. He also added eight rebounds. With his hot finish, Heller netted 16 points. Fifth-year senior forward
Lual Daniel Rahama added 13 points. Fifth-year senior guard
Matt Weir just missed a double-double with 10 points and eight assists.
Wooden rounded out the double-figure scorers.
Concord shot over 50 percent in both halves and 51.4 percent (37-for-72) for the game. CU had 23 assists in the contest.
The Mountain Lions travel to Charleston 4:00 p.m. Saturday for the Mountain East Conference opener.
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