Elon Men’s Basketball Routs William & Mary To Win Third Straight

ELON, N.C. – Elon University men’s basketball defeated William & Mary, 73-54, to win its third straight game on Monday, Feb. 22.

BOX SCORE

“Just proud of our guys,” head coach Mike Schrage began. “We knew William & Mary was going to respond tonight so we tried to come out and really set the tone. To our guys credit, I thought we did. We held them to four points for a while there to start the first half, and I think that was really key in building that momentum to show them that this game wasn’t going to be any different.”

THE RUNDOWN
– Elon opened the game hot again tonight, jumping out to an early 14-4 lead on the strength of a 10-0 run. Simon Wright sparked the early burst by knocking down a corner three that gave the Phoenix a 7-4 advantage. Wright followed that up with a pretty mid-range jumper to extend the lead to five. After a tough layup by Chuck Hannah, Hunter Woods capped the spurt with his first triple of the night to put Elon on top by 10.
– With the Phoenix up by nine with 4:42 before halftime, Michael Graham snatched an offensive rebound and finished strong at the rim to ignite another 9-0 Elon run. After Graham knocked down a pair of free throws to put the Phoenix up by 13, Darius Burford and Hunter McIntosh scored five quick points to extend the lead to 18.
– William & Mary cut the deficit down to 14 with two late free throws, but Elon entered the break with a 36-22 advantage.
– The Phoenix carried over its hot first half start, going on a 15-5 run early in the second half. McIntosh got the ball rolling with his second three of the night to put the Phoenix on top by 20. Moments later, Burford and Ikenna Ndugba each scored tough floaters to widen the gap to 24. McIntosh, Woods and Burford would then add six more quick points from inside the paint to put Elon up 58-31 with just over 12 minutes to play.
– Elon’s lead would swell to as much as 30 with just over nine minutes remaining in the game. The Phoenix never looked back and went on to win 73-54.

NOTES
– Ikenna Ndugba led the way for the Phoenix, posting 17 points, four rebounds and four assists on 6-of-12 shooting from the floor.
– Darius Burford added 13 points, six rebounds and four steals in 31 minutes of action.
– Chuck Hannah chipped in a season-high 10 points and five rebounds in the win.
– Hunter Woods and Simon Wright combined for 17 points and nine rebounds on the night.
– Elon held a 35-24 advantage on the glass and a 11-0 advantage in second chance points.
– The Phoenix led by as much as 30 and never trailed in the game.
– Elon forced a season-high 21 William & Mary turnovers and turned it in to 22 points on the other end.
– Following tonight’s 19-point win, the Phoenix has now won each of its last three games by double-digits.

UP NEXT
Elon will prepare for the upcoming CAA Men’s Basketball Tournament beginning on March 6, in Harrisonburg, Va.