Box Score UNO-CBC Box Score
NEW ORLEANS – The University of New Orleans received double-digit scoring performances from five different players as the squad pulled away in the second half to defeat Champion Baptist 88-69 on Wednesday night at Lakefront Arena.
UNO (11-8) rebounded from a 38.6 percent shooting performance in the first half to break open a four-point halftime lead over the final 20 minutes. The Privateers came out of the half to shoot 48.8 percent and outscore CBC (6-15) 52-37 after leading 36-32 at the break.
“I was glad that our team responded in the second half and played a lot more detail oriented basketball,” said UNO head coach
Mark Slessinger. “We had a lot of details come out short in the first half and just did not finish assignments, so I was pleased with how we played in the second half.”
Lovell Cook and
Max Banchy scored 10 points apiece in the second half on way to 14 and 11 points for the game, respectively.
Brandon Knight and
Antonio Wertz each poured in 12 points for the Privateers while
Generra Varmall rounded out the double figure scorers with 11 points.
Chris Costanza topped the rebounding efforts for the hosts by grabbing a career-high 10 boards. Varmall and Costanza were part of a group of players returning to the floor for UNO in the contest.
“I was happy that we had guys back in the lineup that had been out of the lineup,” said Slessinger. “It was good to have
Generra Varmall,
Lenny Harmon and
Albert Peterson out there tonight and I was real excited that
Chris Costanza had a phenomenal effort on the boards today.”
UNO trailed by five points as CBC jumped out to an early 9-4 advantage with 15:41 remaining in the first half. The Privateers responded by holding CBC without a field goal for the next six minutes, scoring 11 of the next 12 points to move ahead 15-10.
After a tie at 17, UNO took off once more gaining a 32-22 edge on an
Antonio Holmes three-pointer with 3:29 prior to the break. The momentum swung once more to the visitors with CBC closing the gap down to four at 36-32 at the half.
The Privateers came out of the intermission on a game-changing 14-2 run to build a 16-point advantage before four minutes had run on the clock.
UNO's lead increased to a high of 25 points in the second half as the team executed offensively to the tune of 12-0 advantage on the fast break and a 26-12 edge in the paint following the break.
In addition to the offensive efforts by Cook and Banchy, three other players scored at least six points over the final 20 minutes. The five starters played a key part in the offensive production during the stretch, combining to shoot 16 of 21 from the field.
Brandon Likins was the top contributor for CBC with 28 points and 23 rebounds, despite shooting 9 of 25 from the field. The 23 rebounds for Likins established a UNO opponent record for a junior, topping the 22 by ULM's Mike Rose set on Jan. 30, 1974.
Matthias Capaci added 20 points and seven assists for the Tigers, who turned the ball over 26 times in the contest.
“Champion Baptist is very well coached and a great job in preparing for us tonight,” said Slessinger. “Likins is as good as any player we've played all season and I was happy that we did a good job defending him, even if he had 28 points for the game.”
The Privateers will now turn their effort to a Saturday contest at Loyola scheduled for a 1 p.m. tip.
The game will be broadcast on WGSO 990 AM and reflects a time change from the original schedule in consideration of the New Orleans Saints' playoff game.
