BUCKHANNON, W.Va. - A 10-1 run midway through the second half helped the Concord University men's basketball team pick up a third straight Mountain East Conference road win as it down West Virginia Wesleyan, 77-66, Wednesday night at the Rockefeller Center.
Trailing 53-49 at the 10:45 mark of the second half, the Mountain Lions (8-6) scored 10 of the next 11 points to take a 59-54 advantage. Senior forward
David Bea Mulumba scored six of his nine points during the run.
After WVWC (0-14) came back to tie the game at 59-59, and again at 61-61, junior guard
Brandon Kennedy hit a three-pointer at the 4:54 mark to give Concord a lead it would not relinquish for the remainder of the game.
In fact, CU held the Bobcats to five points over the last 5:02 of the contest to secure the win.
Both defenses stifled the other's offense in the first half as the Mountain Lions shot just 30 percent while West Virginia Wesleyan hit only 35 percent of its shots in the opening 20 minutes.
Down 31-21 with 2:48 remaining in the first half, CU finished the half on a 9-2 run. Included in the scoring was one of two first-half three-pointers from Kennedy and an old-fashioned three-point play from senior guard/forward
Malik Johnson.
For the game, Concord shot 37.9 percent (25-for-66), but heated up to shoot 48.3 percent in the second half. CU held Wesleyan to 38 percent (27-of-71)
Johnson notched his second career double-double—both against West Virginia Wesleyan—with 17 points and 10 rebounds. Sophomore guard
Ethan Heller matched Johnson's 17 points as he went 8-of-8 at the foul line to match a career high in made free throws.
Six different Mountain Lions pumped in at least nine points. Junior forward
Da'Vion Moore scored 11 points off the bench in just 19 minutes of action. Senior forward
Liam Evans and Kennedy equaled Mulumba's nine points. Mulumba added a game-best 11 rebounds.
Concord pulled down a season-high 53 rebounds as it outrebounded the Bobcats by 15.
Concord welcomes Glenville State to the Carter Center 4:30 p.m. Saturday in the final regular season game of the year.
Â
