- Posted in All University
- Category: AthleticsCampus News
LINCOLN UNIVERSITY, PA - The Corey Lowery era got off to a blazing beginning as five players reached double figures and the Lincoln University men's basketball team rolled Salem University Tuesday, 99-78, in non-conference action at Manuel Rivero Hall. (Post Game Presser)
Junior Bernard Lightsey (Philadelphia, Pa./Imhotep Charter) (Philadelphia, Pa./Imhotep Charter) led the way with 21 points, while junior Ja'Zere Noel (Woodbury, N.J./Woodbury) (Woodbury, N.J/Woodbury) had a career night with 20 points and 10 rebounds. It is his first collegiate double-double as he reached career-highs in both points and rebounds.
Junior Korey Williams (Brooklyn, N.Y./LaSalle Academy) (Brooklyn, N.Y./LaSalle Academy) added 19 points, seven rebounds, and a team-high four assists. Junior Zahrion Blue (Princeton, N.J./Princeton) (Princeton, N.J./Princeton) added 17 points, and senior Deaquan Williams (Camden, N.J./Camden) chipped in with 11 points and eight boards.
Lincoln opened the game up with a 13-0 run midway through the first half to open up an 18-point lead. Five different players scored for the Lions, while Salem missed all five of their shots – all three-pointers. The Tigers took, and missed, a bunch of shots from beyond the arc in the game. Salem, which converted 50 percent of their long-range shots in its opener, was just 9-of-45 (20 percent) from three-point range in the game.
However, the game wasn't going to be a runaway for the Lions in their season opener. After not sending Salem to the line for the first 11 minutes of the game, a plethora of fouls enabled the Tigers to march consistently to the line.
Salem went 13-of-16 from the charity stripe in the last half of the opening stanza, and following a 17-7 run, the Tigers trailed by just one point with 77 seconds remaining. But, Lincoln tallied the final six points of the half to claim the seven-point halftime advantage.
The run extended out to 10-0 as the Lions scored the first two buckets of the second half to push the lead back to double figures. Lincoln's lead would stay double figures for the remainder of the contest.
Another scoring run, this time 13-2, helped push the LU lead to a game-high 23 points with 7:13 remaining. Salem did pull as close as 15 before the Lions scored the final six points of the game.
Lincoln (1-0) returns to action 5 p.m. Monday as it travels to Bluefield State. It will be the season opener for the Big Blues.
