Delaware Hangs On for 79-76 Season-Opening Win Over Salem

Saturday, December 5

Newark, DE

2:00 PM

University of Delaware

1-0,0-0CAA

Salem

2-2,0-0DII Independent

Salem (WV)

Delaware

Photo by: Mark Campbell

Delaware Hangs On for 79-76 Season-Opening Win Over Salem

12/5/2020 4:57:00 PM | Men's Basketball

Box Score Photo Gallery

NEWARK, Del. – Kevin Anderson and Ebby Asamoah each hit clutch three-pointers in the final minute as the Delaware men's basketball team hung on for a 79-76 win over Division II Salem (W.Va.) University in the Blue Hens' season opener Saturday afternoon at the Bob Carpenter Center.

Delaware led by as many as 18 points early in the second half and was still up 70-55 with 7:45 remaining, but the Tigers scored the next 15 points to pull even at the 2:58 mark. Dylan Painter answered with a free throw before finding Anderson for a layup to put the Blue Hens back up three, but Jordan Forbes countered with a triple to knot the game at 73-73.

Anderson then buried a three-pointer from the top of the key with 59 seconds on the clock, and following a Salem turnover, Asamoah knocked down a triple from the right wing to put the Blue Hens up six with 18 seconds to go.

Fonz Hale connected on a three-pointer to bring the Tigers back within three and Salem had a chance to force overtime following a UD turnover, but Forbes' three-point attempt fell short just before the final horn.

Anderson finished with 21 points and 10 rebounds to post his second career double-double while Asamoah, who hit six three-pointers all of last year, added a career-high 20 points on 6 of 8 shooting from behind the arc.

Ryan Allen contributed 12 points on the day, Aleks Novakovich added 10 points and five assists, and Painter grabbed a team-high 11 boards.

Delaware shot 50 percent from the floor, while its 16 three-pointers made (in 31 attempts) are tied for the second most in program history.

Hale scored a game-high 28 points for the Tigers, whose 41 three-point attempts are the most by a Blue Hen opponent in school history.

Martin Ingelsby
"We need to improve in a lot of areas. Tip your hat to Salem, we got careless with the basketball and gave them some confidence. We got into a good rhythm in the first half against their zone, but got stagnant in the second half. We had a bit of rust on both ends of the floor; we'll get back to practice, watch film and learn from this."

Kevin Anderson
"It was nice to finally play against somebody other than our teammates. We had a lot of defensive lapses and turnovers, and need to work on those things in practice to get better. Ebby's a great shooter who worked really hard over the summer, and I have a lot of confidence in him."