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UNC Wilmington Athletics

Scoreboard

Events/Results

cacok_devontae
70
UNCW UNCW 2-3
79
Winner Valparaiso VALPO 7-0
UNCW UNCW
2-3
70
Final
79
Valparaiso VALPO
7-0
Winner
Score By Periods
Team 1 2 F
UNCW UNCW 35 35 70
Valparaiso VALPO 35 44 79

Game Recap: Men's Basketball | | Joe Browning

Seahawks Fall In Savannah Invitational Finale

UNCW-Valparaiso Box Score (PDF)

SAVANNAH, Georgia – Nebraska transfer Bakari Evelyn poured in a career-high 30 points and Valparaiso cashed in on 25-of-31 free throws in the second half to defeat UNCW, 79-70, in the Savannah Invitational finale on Saturday at the Savannah Civic Center.
 
The Crusaders, 7-0, went 2-0 in the event and shared the championship with Loyola Chicago, which topped the Seahawks on Friday. UNCW carries a 2-3 record into a Thursday date with rival East Carolina in Greenville.
 
Senior guard Jordon Talley and redshirt sophomore guard Ty Taylor had 13 points apiece to pace the Seahawks, who shot 33.8 percent from the field. Talley was named to the All-Tournament team after scoring 33 points and dishing out nine assists over the two days.
 
Junior forward Devontae Cacok registered his fourth double-double of the season with 12 points and 10 rebounds and freshman guard Jay Estime scored a career-high 11 points.
 
Evelyn, a redshirt sophomore guard, made 8-of-11 field goals and sank 11-of-12 at the free throw line to power the Crusaders. He became the third opponent to eclipse the 30-point mark this season vs. UNCW, joining Davidson's Peyton Aldridge (37) and Campbell's Marcus Burk (33).v
 
Valparaiso's leading scorer, Tevonn Walker, was the only other player in double figures for the Indiana club with 16 points.
 
"I was really disappointed with last night, but we played hard and gave a great effort tonight," said C.B. McGrath, UNCW's first-year head coach. "We got off to a good start. It wasn't because of a lack of effort and determination. They just shot too many free throws in the second half. That was the big difference in the game right there.
 
"I'm proud of how we played tonight. We're getting better and making progress. We have to keep getting better every day."
 
UNCW and Valparaiso battled to a 35-all draw in the first 20 minutes and the game still hung in the balance until the Crusaders gained some separation around the seven-minute mark.
 
Valparaiso opened the second half with a 13-4 run to grab a 48-39 advantage, but redshirt junior guard JaQuel Richmond brought the score even at 48-48 with a teardrop jumper in the paint at 13:07.
 
UNCW jumped ahead briefly, 50-49, on a jumper on the left baseline by Estime before the Crusaders took the lead for good when reserve wing John Kiser sank both ends of a bonus situation. Overall, Valparaiso scored 17 points on the charity stripe in the final 10 minutes to nail down the win.
 
Playing the first of two in-season tournaments, the Seahawks, paired up against their second straight Missouri Valley Conference foe, trailed by six points early before turning the tables on the Crusaders and cranking out a 10-point margin – their largest lead of the game.
 
After Walker's three-point play staked Valparaiso to a 10-4 edge with at the 16:52 mark, Marcus Bryan brought the Seahawks even at 16-all with 12:01 left. The bucket kicked off a 10-spurt and Cacok converted both ends of a bonus situation at 9:05 to give the Seahawks a 26-16 advantage.
 
Valparaiso responded, however, with eight consecutive points and finally tied the score at 22-all on Micah Bradford's triple with 22 seconds left in the half. Richmond's three-ball from the left corner with two seconds remaining caromed off the rim, leaving the two clubs squared at intermission.
 
Evelyn was the catalyst for the Crusaders in the first half, scoring 13 points on 5-of-7 shooting and grabbing four rebounds.
 
UNCW concludes the first month of the regular season on Thursday with an 8 p.m. start against ECU at Minges Coliseum in Greenville, N.C.
 
GAME NOTES: Senior forward Marcus Bryan scored eight points and pulled down 10 rebounds on his birthday…The Crusaders outrebounded the Seahawks, 46-41….Both teams had 10 turnovers….Four Seahawks had four field goals apiece…Valpo's largest lead of 11 points came with 48 seconds remaining…There were eight ties and four lead changes in the contest…Devontae Cacok scored eight of his 12 points at the foul line...UNCW plays the third game in five straight games away on Thursday in Greenville...Saturday's attendance: 547.


 
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