Skip To Main Content
Skip To Main Content

UNC Wilmington Athletics

Scoreboard

Events/Results

white_caaquarterfinals_030622
Bradley Pearce/UNCW OUR

Men's Basketball Joe Browning

Second-Half Rally Carries Seahawks Into Semifinals

Box Score WASHINGTON, D.C. – First-Team All-CAA performer Jaylen Sims scored a game-high 16 points and junior guard Shykeim Phillips scored all 12 of his points in the second half as No. 2 seeded UNCW advanced to the semifinals of the 2022 CAA Men's Basketball Championship presented by Jersey Mike's with a 75-58 victory over No. 7 Elon on Sunday night at the Entertainment & Sports Arena in the nation's capital.
 
The Seahawks raised their record to 22-8 with their sixth victory in the last seven games. UNCW will face No. 6 Charleston in the second nationally-televised semifinal on Monday at 8:30 p.m. The Cougars upset No. 3 Hofstra, 92-76, late Sunday behind a career-high 31 points from graduate forward John Meeks. Elon ends Mike Schrage's third season with the Phoenix with a 10-22 record.
 
Sims, from Charlotte, N.C., added six rebounds and four assists to fill up the stat sheet for the Seahawks, who shot 38.7 percent in the first half and bounced back for 59.3 percent after intermission. Freshman guard Trazarien White racked up his third double-double with 15 points and 11 rebounds and graduate guard Mike Okauru added 12 points to go along with Phillips' total.
 
Junior guard Hunter McIntosh was the lone Elon player in double figures with 15 points. He scored 13 of the total in the first half but was limited to four field goal attempts – all misses – in the final period.
 
"We had some rust early in the first half and they came out ready to play," said second-year UNCW head coach Takayo Siddle, the CAA's Coach of the Year. "They were tougher than us to start the game. I thought we finished strong on the back end of the second half.
 
"We came in the second half, we toughened up and executed our game plan to a tee. We jumped on them quick and never looked back. Our guys finished strong."
 
After falling behind, 36-31, at halftime, the Seahawks came out blazing in the second half and reeled off 10 unanswered points over the first 3:18 of the final period to put the Phoenix on their heels with a 41-36 advantage
 
Elon responded with four points, but UNCW used another mini-run of seven points to break the game open. A spinning bucket by Phillips in the paint gave the Seahawks a 48-40 cushion at 13:52. The Seahawks kept rolling down the stretch and increased the lead to as many as 17 points when White scored inside at 5:43 to extend the margin to 63-46.
 
The Seahawks outrebounded the Phoenix, 36-29, and committed just five turnovers on the night. UNCW scored 36 points in the paint against the taller Phoenix and outscored their North Carolina counterparts, 44-22, in the decisive second half.
 
Elon shot 50 percent in the first half and led by as many 14 points before carrying a five-point lead into the break, 36-31. McIntosh did most of the damage, canning 5-of-6 field goals en route to 13 points as the Phoenix converted 14-of-28 field goals.
 
Elon led, 18-4, with 12:08 left in the opening period after a three-pointer by Zac Ervin and the lead remained in double digits until the Seahawks cut into the deficit in the final 10 minutes of the opening period.
 
Trailing 25-13 with 6:46 left, Okauru connected on back-to-back baskets to an 11-2 spurt. A Jahmari Harvey three-pointer at 3:17 help the Seahawks creep within, 27-24
 
Elon responded with a pair of buckets to get the margin back to seven points, but a tip-in by Jaylen Fornes as the buzzer sounded helped the Seahawks slice the deficit to 36-31 at intermission.

GAME NOTES: The two teams played in the CAA Tournament for only the second time…
The Seahawks have won more games (42) than any other school in the CAA Tournament…The Seahawks stand 14-14 lifetime vs. the Phoenix… The Seahawks are 22-7 lifetime in the quarterfinals… The No. 2 seed has fashioned a record of 59-28 in CAA Tournament play and gone 30-7 in quarterfinal games….The Seahawks are competing in their 37th CAA Tournament and own a record of 42-30 in the tourney…The No. 2 seed is now 27-6 vs. the No. 7 seed in the tournament…Twelve players saw action for the Seahawks…UNCW had 10 offensive rebounds…The Seahawks had six blocks, including four swats by James Baker, Jr.


 
Print Friendly Version

Players Mentioned

Mike Okauru

#4 Mike Okauru

G
6' 4"
Graduate Student
Shykeim Phillips

#2 Shykeim Phillips

G
6' 2"
Junior
Jaylen Sims

#30 Jaylen Sims

G
6' 6"
Senior
James Baker, Jr.

#3 James Baker, Jr.

G
6' 7"
Graduate Student
Jaylen Fornes

#1 Jaylen Fornes

G
6' 3"
Graduate Student
Trazarien White

#13 Trazarien White

F
6' 6"
Freshman

Players Mentioned

Mike Okauru

#4 Mike Okauru

6' 4"
Graduate Student
G
Shykeim Phillips

#2 Shykeim Phillips

6' 2"
Junior
G
Jaylen Sims

#30 Jaylen Sims

6' 6"
Senior
G
James Baker, Jr.

#3 James Baker, Jr.

6' 7"
Graduate Student
G
Jaylen Fornes

#1 Jaylen Fornes

6' 3"
Graduate Student
G
Trazarien White

#13 Trazarien White

6' 6"
Freshman
F