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| Erin Senegal (#22) scored a career-high 33 points |
From our friends at UDC Athletics...
Firebirds Pull Through for Season’s First Win, 93-83 Over Chestnut Hill
After three consecutive four-point losses, the host University of the District of Columbia men's basketball team earned their first win of the season, 93-83 in a rematch vs. Chestnut Hill College on Saturday night.
Senior guard Erin Senegal powered the Firebirds as he registered a game and career-high 33 points on 9-of-19 FG shooting to go with six rebounds, three assists, two steals and one block. Junior transfer forward Jayone Troutman added 19 points on 9-of-15 from the field, senior forward Geran Pope posted a double-double of 12 points and a game-high 12 rebounds, and junior transfer forward Joseph Nickerson pitched in with 13 points, four rebounds, one assist, one steal and one block in just 11 minutes off of the bench in the 2nd half.
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| Jayone Troutman (#23) added 19 points |
With the win, the Firebirds (1-5) avenged a 93-86 season-opening loss to the Griffins on November 14th at the Philadelphia University Conference Challenge. Chestnut Hill fell to 2-4 on the season with the loss.
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| Senior Geran Pope (#34) registered a double-double |
The Griffins featured four double-figure scorers, including team-leader Liban Awl, who registered 18 points, three assists and three rebounds off the bench. Starting guards Luke Dickson and Demetrius Isaac added 15 and 14 points, respectively, and forward Noel Hightower pitched in with 10 points, five steals, four rebounds and three assists.
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| Junior Joseph Nickerson (#15) scored 13 points in just 11 minutes |
A streaky first half saw the Firebirds make a 7-0 run to push a one-point lead, 11-10, to an eight-point lead, 18-10 courtesy of an Erin Senegal three-pointer just past the 12-minute mark. UDC still had a seven-point cushion, 25-18 following a Troutman layup at the 8:37 mark, but an 8-1 Chestnut Hill surge culminating in a Liban three-pointer forced a 26-all tie at the 6:20 mark. Later, another Liban three-pointer would give the Griffins their first lead of the game since three-minutes into the action, 32-31 approaching four minutes. The lead would change hands twice more, but a three-point play by Gerald Evariste accounted for the final points of the half with 56-seconds remaining, and the visitors would take a one point advantage, 37-36 at the break.
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| Virgil Fleming (#24) led all players with 5 assists |
Chestnut Hill marched out to a 9-2 run to start the 2nd half, highlighted by a Dickson triple and culminating in a pair of Demetrius free-throws to give the Griffins their largest lead of the night, 46-38 at the 17:30 mark. At that point, Senegal would lead the Firebirds on a 25-4 spell over 6:35 that transformed an eight-point Firebird deficit into a 63-50 UDC lead. The senior guard started the run with a three-pointer, added another three-pointer later, and concluded the run with five consecutive made free-throws on a possession where he was fouled shooting a three-pointer and the Griffins were assessed a technical foul.
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| Traevon Butler (#5) added 3 points & 2 dimes |
The Firebirds had their largest lead of the night, 67-53 after a Troutman jumper just past the nine-minute mark, and maintained a 10-point lead, 81-71 as the clock ticked under two minutes to play. They would make their final 12 FT attempts to ice the win - including a 6-of-6 performance by Nickerson.
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| Forward Martin Campbell (#20) grabbed 8 rebounds in 18 minutes |
UDC out-shot their guests 45-percent (30-of-67) to 41-percent (27-of-66) from the field and 44-percent (8-of-18) to 33-percent (8-of-24) from three-point range. The Firebirds also won the rebounding battle, 44-39, and had two more assists (17-15) while equaling the Griffins in turnovers (13.)
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| Always coaching: Mike Riley chats with Kasim Chandler (r) |
Click here for last night's box score.
