GREENSBORO, N.C. – Elon University men’s basketball fell to the UNCG Spartans, 75-44, on Thursday night, Dec. 7, inside Greensboro Coliseum.
Tyler Seibring led the Phoenix (6-4) with team-highs of 11 points and eight rebounds. Sheldon Eberhardt also tallied 11 points and finished 5-of-6 from the floor. Dmitri Thompsonled the team with five assists and Brian Dawkins added seven points and four rebounds for the Phoenix.
“They were the aggressor from the start of the game and for most of the first half,” said head coach Matt Matheny. “I thought we started the second half on our toes, but UNCG’s credit, they played with that aggression for 40 minutes and got the better of us.”
UNCG (6-3) was led on the scoring side by Marvin Smith and Isaiah Miller as they each scored 12 points apiece for the Spartans. James Dickey flirted with a double-double scoring nine points and grabbing a team-high eight rebounds.
The Spartans limited the Phoenix to just 34.7 percent shooting from the floor and 14.3 percent from three. UNCG forced Elon to commit 16 turnovers, which led to 14 points as the Spartans outscored Elon 14-2 off turnovers.
HIGHLIGHTS
After the first two buckets were traded in the first minute, the Spartans went on a 11-0 run, limiting the Phoenix to just 1-of-6 shooting for the first six minutes and had a 13-2 lead and Elon called a timeout at the 13:25 mark.
Elon scored five straight points to cut UNCG’s lead 13-7, but the Spartans responded with a 5-0 spurt of its own to take an 18-7 lead with 11:40 left in the half. Dawkins completed a three-point play at the 10:30 mark to bring the Phoenix within eight, 18-10; the closest Elon would get to the Spartans in the half.
UNCG made a 14-4 run over the next six minutes to take its largest lead of the half, 32-14, with just 1:54 on the clock. Elon would cut UNCG’s lead to 16 at the break as the Spartans held a 35-19 halftime lead. UNCG held Elon to just 32 percent shooting in the half, only allowing eight Phoenix field goals. The Spartans shot 60 percent from the floor in the first 20-minute clip.
Seibring opened the second half scoring four unanswered points to begin an 8-3 Phoenix run in the first 2:46 to cut UNCG’s lead 38-27 at the 16:53 mark.
UNCG responded with a 16-2 run over the next five minutes to take a 54-29 lead with 11:26 on the clock. Elon ended the run when Nathan Priddy drained a triple for his first-career points.
The run would amass to a 20-5 spurt, extending UNCG’s lead to 58-32 with 9:16 remaining in the half. The Spartans extended its lead to 27, 64-37, after four straight points from Dickey was capped off by a dunk with 6:36 to play.
The Spartans climbed out to its largest lead of the game, 71-40, with just over two minutes remaining and went on to defeat the Phoenix, 75-44.
NOTES
– UNCG snaps Elon’s 12-game winning streak against the Spartans in the all-time series with the victory. It was the first win for the Spartans over Elon since Jan. 28, 2010, when UNCG defeated the Phoenix 62-55 in Greensboro.
– Elon made a season-low four three pointers against the Spartans. Elon shot just 14.7 percent from deep.
– The Spartans got a lift from the bench as UNCG outscored Elon 31-16 in that category.
– Nathan Priddy and Duje Radja scored their first-career points for the Phoenix in the second half. Priddy hit a three at the 11:10 mark and Radja made a layup with 3:43 left in the second half.
– Seibring scored in double figures for the eighth time this season and for the third straight contest.
UP NEXT
The Phoenix takes a 10-day break before hitting the road again on Sunday, Dec. 17, to face Boston University. Tipoff inside Case Gym is set for 1 p.m.