University of Delaware Athletics
University of Delaware
Liberty
Liberty Edges University of Delaware Men's Basketball, 61-55, in Blue Hens? Season Opener
11/17/2014 10:17:00 PM | Men's Basketball
LYNCHBURG, Va. -- The University of Delaware men's basketball team held a two-point lead with three minutes remaining but missed its final seven shots from there as Liberty edged the Blue Hens, 61-55, Monday night at the Vines Center in UD's season opener.
Maurice Jeffers slammed home a follow dunk at the 3:03 mark to put Delaware in front 55-53, but Liberty's Davis Andoh hit one free throw before burying a tough 18-foot jumper with 1:38 remaining to give the Flames the lead for good. The Blue Hens had the ball in the final minute, but Blue Hen freshman Chivarsky Corbett's three-point attempt from the right corner was off the mark, while Tomasz Gielo hit two free throws at the other end to put Liberty up three with 23 seconds to go.
Cazmon Hayes then misfired from deep, before Gielo connected on three more free throws to close the scoring.
Liberty, which opened its season last Friday with a win over Division III Randolph College, improved to 2-0 on the young season. Delaware dropped its season opener for the ninth consecutive year.
Hayes scored a career-high 17 points to lead the Blue Hens, while freshman Kory Holden produced 13 points, six rebounds and five assists in his impressive Delaware debut. Marvin King-Davis was the third Blue Hen in double figures with 11 points, while Barnett Harris (left) corralled a team-high nine rebounds.
Delaware held a 47-37 rebounding advantage and attempted 14 more shots than Liberty, but the Blue Hens went just 3 of 24 from long range.
Gielo posted a double-double for the Flames with 23 points and 10 rebounds, while Joe Retic added 11 points and Andoh chipped in with nine.
The teams were knotted 30-30 at the half, but after falling behind by five, Delaware went back in front 38-37 when Holden found Eric Carter for a dunk. UD was still up a point at 40-39 after a Jeffers basket, but Liberty erupted for an 10-point run to take a 49-40 advantage with 8:57 to play.
Delaware was still down seven a minute later but the Blue Hens responded with a 9-0 spurt of its own, going back in front 53-51 at the 4:49 mark on a Hayes layup. UD was back up two after the putback dunk by Jeffers, but Liberty scored the final eight points of the game to pull out the win.
“When we got down nine I didn't know what to expect, but for our kids to fight back the way they did, we'll be alright,” said Blue Hen head coach Monté Ross. “We missed some shots at the end, but we got the shots we wanted. We got great looks from deep but they just didn't go in - sometimes that happens. I'm also proud of the way we battled and fought on the offensive glass.”
Delaware opened the game with an 8-4 lead as Holden scored six early points, but UD missed its next nine field goal attempts as Liberty used an 8-0 spurt to take a four-point advantage midway through the period.
The Blue Hens responded and led by as many as seven points at 23-16 following a Corbett three-pointer, before the Flames scored four straight points to knot the contest at 27-27. Hayes then drilled a triple with 30 seconds on the clock, before Retic answered from deep for Liberty as the teams went into the break even at 30-30.
“Once the ball went up I just played my game,” said Holden, who committed just two turnovers in 32 minutes of action. “We're just going to keep working hard at practice; this is just the beginning.”
Delaware returns to action on Friday with a 10 p.m. Eastern game at Cal Poly.
Game Notes:
• Liberty avenged a 77-64 loss to Delaware in Newark on Jan. 1, 2014
• UD dropped to 6-3 all-time vs. Big South opponents
• The Blue Hens opened the season on the road for the fifth straight year
• Delaware played without Kyle Anderson, who will miss the first month of the season with a right hand injury
