Jordan Downing scored over 20 points for the second straight game, but it was the Flames that got hot in the second half, extending a close two-point halftime lead, to 12 in a 65-53 win over the Presbyterian College men's basketball team tonight in Big South action at the Vines Center in Lynchburg, Va.
The Blue Hose fall to 4-17 overall and 0-6 in the Big South, while Liberty moves to 9-12, 3-3. PC returns home Tuesday, Jan. 28, for a 7 p.m. game against high Point. Liberty is on the road at Coastal Carolina the 29th at 7 p.m.
Downing finished the night with 24 points, followed by Danny Herrera with 12 and Austin Anderson with his career-high tying 11 points. Herrera paced the team on the boards as well with four on the night.
John Caleb Sanders and Thomasz Gielo led Liberty with 13 apiece, with Antwan Burris finishing with 12 points, to add to his team leading 10 rebounds.
The Blue Hose shot 41.7% for the game, but were just nine-of-26 from the field in the second half. Liberty shot 43.6% and 50% in the second. The story of the game were rebounds, with Liberty holding a commanding 41-18 advantage, including a 17-4 margin on the offensive end, resulting in 16 points for the Flames.
PC hit eight-of-19 from the perimeter, but connected on just two in the second half, while Liberty was nine-of-26, hitting five in the final stanza. The Blue Hose recorded seven turnovers, compared to 10 for Liberty
After Herrera opened the second half with a basket to tie the game at 33-33, Liberty, highlighted by two three-pointers from Gielo, outscored the Blue Hose 11-2 to take a 44-35 lead with 16:48 left.
Leading by seven with 11:10 to go, the Flames scored 10 straight to jump out to a 17-point, 56-39 lead with just under eight to play. Back to back baskets by the Blue Hose made it a 13-point game with just over six to play, but the Flames were able to keep the lead in double-digits down the stretch to take the 65-53 win.
After Liberty opened a sluggish first half for both teams with five straight, the Blue Hoes fought back to cut it to one, 5-4, with 16:13 remaining. It remained a close game for the next several minutes with PC knotting the game at 11 at 13:24 off an Ed Drew jumper.
Downing gave PC its first lead of the game at 12:11 with his second three-pointer of the night, before Sanders took the Flames back up by two with a three-pointer of his own 20 seconds later. Sander's three ignited a 12-2 run that saw Liberty take its largest lead of the game, 25-16, with 8:25 left.
PC responded with seven unanswered, five coming from Anderson, to cut the margin to one, 25-24, at the 6:15 mark. Liberty went back up by five over the next two minutes, with a basket by Downing at 2:21 that cut the lead to two, 33-31, the last basket of the half.
