MURFREESBORO, N.C. (Feb. 14) – After yielding 45 points in the second half, the Trojans fell by a 77-59 margin on the road against Chowan in Conference Carolinas action on Wednesday night.
With the loss, the University of Mount Olive men's basketball program drops to 6-18 overall behind a 5-9 mark in conference play. The Hawks earn a season sweep over their divisional rival and hold a 4-1 record in the previous five meetings. Meanwhile, Chowan clinches a third consecutive victory to improve to 16-8 this season with a 10-5 record in league action.
Freshman
Josiah Watkins led the team with 14 points on 5-of-12 shooting with seven rebounds and two assists in 23 minutes off the bench. Sophomore
Shane Peterson produced 13 points, four rebounds, and one steal in 30 minutes. Fellow freshman
Kahlif Barnes finished with 10 points, six rebounds, one assist, one steal, and one block in 34 minutes.
The Trojans established an early 8-2 advantage following a pair of three-pointers in the initial two minutes of the first half. Chowan responded with a 10-2 run after converting four-of-eight from the floor to take a 12-10 edge before Watkins made a driving layup to tie the game. After a nearly three-minute scoreless drought, the Hawks went on a short run to take a 21-15 lead at the 6:55 mark before UMO answered with an 8-4 rally to trail by a 25-23 margin. Chowan scored seven of the final nine points in the first half to hold a 32-25 advantage at the break.
In the second half, senior
Kristopher Clark nailed a three-pointer to cut the deficit to four points in the opening minutes before the Hawks scored 15 unanswered points to extend the lead to 47-28. Barnes brought an end to the scoreless drought with six consecutive points, but Chowan offensively mounted an 11-0 run to hold a 58-34 advantage with 10:12 remaining. UMO found a rhythm over the next five-plus minutes with a 15-5 rally, led by Watkins with six points, to close the gap, 63-49. The Hawks made four-of-five from the field in the closing minutes to seal a 77-59 win.
Mount Olive finished the contest shooting 22-of-65 (33.8 percent) from the floor while converting 25.9 percent (7-of-27) from three-point range. Meanwhile, Chowan posted a .469 field goal percentage (30-of-64) and made 7-of-25 (28.0 percent) from beyond the arc. The Hawks finished with a 51-30 rebounding advantage while scoring 17 second-chance points. The Trojans totaled 28 points in the paint and 26 points off the bench.
Junior Daylan Askew scored a game-high 20 points on 7-of-12 shooting with four rebounds and three assists in 24 minutes. Aaron Ross contributed 12 points, four rebounds, and one assist in 17 minutes off the bench. Junior Skyler Davies finished with 11 points, six rebounds, two assists, and two blocks in 25 minutes.
Mount Olive returns to Conference Carolinas action on Saturday, Feb. 21, when it hosts Emmanuel on Senior Day, starting at 4 p.m.
