Box Score
LeVelle Moton Postgame Comments Southern Wesleyan
DURHAM, N.C. (NCCUEaglePride.com) – Tuesday night inside McDougald-McLendon Gym, the Eagles of North Carolina Central University used a complete—team effort with six student-athletes scoring in double figures to roll past a feisty Southern Wesleyan University 94-60, earning their third straight win on the season.
The Warriors of SWU proved to be a formidable opponent early in the contest, as they led 5-3 after the first two minutes, but the Eagles answered with an 11-0 spurt of their own that included an outside shot from Emanuel Chapman (Raleigh, N.C.) and two Dominique Sutton (Durham, N.C.) dunks to put NCCU ahead at 14-5 with 15:43 remaining in the first stanza.
Southern Wesleyan swung back to cut the deficit to three at 14-11 with 13:46 left, but NCCU quickly returned the favor with a 9-2 run to stretch the margin back out to double figures at 23-13 on the heels of a momentum swinging three-pointer from Ebuka Anyaorah (Suwanee, Ga.) with 10:25 to go.
Anyaorah followed that act with a couple more buckets from the outside to widen the margin out to 12 at 26-14 with 9:28 to go.
His third three of the first half with 7:25 left gave NCCU a 31-14 lead, moments later sophomore Jeremy Ingram (Charlotte, N.C.), who played in his first game after injuring his hand in the preseason, drained a three of his own to put the maroon and gray up by 20 at 34-14 with 6:30 left in the first half.
NCCU took a 47-30 lead into the locker room as its lead grew to as wide as 21 points, and the Eagles scored 18 points off of 13 Warrior turnovers.
SWU scored the first five points of the second half to challenge LeVelle Moton’s squad, but the Eagles proved to be too much as the maroon and gray shot a scorching 16-of-25 (64 percent) from the field that included a ridiculous 6-for-7 (85.7 percent) from the outside to run away with the 94-60 victory.
Despite going 0-for-3 from the outisde in the first half, senior Landon Clement (Raleigh, N.C.) got it going in the second half as he hit three three-pointers to tie Shawn Ray (2000-03) for sixth all-time at NCCU with 133 career three-pointers. Clement finished the night with 13 points.
Current MEAC (Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference) player of the week, Ray Willis, recorded his first double-double at NCCU leading the way with 18 points and 13 rebounds. The other four student-athletes to record double figures on the night included Sutton, who finished with 16 points, Ingram ended his first game of the season with 13 points, Anyaorah went 4-for-5 from three-point range to finish with 12 points, and Nick Chasten (Raleigh, N.C.) ended up with 11 points including 7 points in the second frame.
Sophomore point guard Chapman recorded double figure assists for the third straight game as he racked up 11 helpers for NCCU, that included a heady, crowd pleasing save of the basketball as that ended up in the hands of a wide-open Clement, who buried his first three of the night, giving the home faithful something worth standing for in the second half. Chapman has 37 assists in the last three ballgames.
The maroon and gray outscored Southern Wesleyan 38-6 in points off the bench.
Southern Wesleyan ended the contest with three players reaching double figures as Nikola Lambic led the way with 18 points, while Kenny Joyner finished with 15 points, and Raleigh, N.C. native Nate Miller hit four-threes to end the contest with 14 points.
NCCU (4-3) currently owns a five-game winning streak inside the friendly confines of McDougald-McLendon Gym, and turns its attention to Saturday’s much anticipated MEAC opener against arch-rival North Carolina A&T. Doubleheader action is set to begin at 2:00 p.m., while the men’s contest is scheduled for a 4:00 p.m. tipoff.
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