VIRGINIA BEACH, Va. (Release via Virginia Wesleyan Athletics) – Behind a 27-point performance from Omari DeVeaux and a 52-point second half, the Virginia Wesleyan men’s basketball team knocked off the top-ranked Captains of Christopher Newport University on Thursday evening at TowneBank Arena in Virginia Beach, VA.
INSIDE THE SCORE
Result: Virginia Wesleyan 77 – No. 1 Christopher Newport 76
Records: Virginia Wesleyan 11-1 | No. 1 Christopher Newport 9-2
Location: TowneBank Arena | Virginia Beach, Va.
HOW IT HAPPENED
The teams were neck and neck through the opening four and a half minutes with the score sitting 8-8 at the 15:46 mark. The Captains pulled ahead 15-8 after scoring three consecutive baskets and continued to pull away 20-11 by the 13-minute mark. The Marlins found themselves trailing by double-digits a few minutes later as the Captains hit a pair of three-pointers that put the score at 28-13 (10:14). Christopher Newport maintained their double-digit lead throughout the remainder of the first half as the teams entered halftime with the score sitting at 43-25.
Virginia Wesleyan opened the second half with a three-pointer from Eric Rowland putting the score at 43-28, but Christopher Newport opened up a 20-point lead, 50-30, at the 17:45 mark on a layup by Jahn Hines. After a pair of Hines’ free throws, Jordan Crump connected on a three-pointer at 16:12 to start the Marlin comeback that saw 42 points scored in the remaining 16 minutes. Omari DeVeaux followed Crump’s three with a three-pointer of his own while Anthony Jackson dishes up a layup that pulled the Marlins within 12 points, 52-40 at the 15-minute mark. CNU and VWU went back and forth trading basket for basket as the Captains held on to an 11 to 13-point lead for six minutes. With just over nine minutes to play, DeVeaux completed an old-fashioned three-point play scoring a layup and free throw pulling the Marlins within 10 points, 63-53 (9:10). The Captains reclaimed a 12-point lead, 71-59, with 5:14 remaining, but over the next four minutes Virginia Wesleyan went on a 14-2 rally to even the score at 73 all on a slam dunk by Amarion Wilson with 1:10 on the clock. CNU took a one-point lead, 74-73, after Matt Brodie went one-of-two from the free-throw line, but VWU swung the score back in their favor, 75-74, after DeVeaux scored both of his with 29 seconds left. The Captains scored with four seconds left to go back up 76-75, but the Marlins DeVeaux went coast-to-coast scoring a buzzer-beater layup to win the game for Virginia Wesleyan 77-76.
KEY STATS
The Marlins were led by Omari DeVeaux with 27 points and six rebounds, while Amarion WIlson scored 14 points and brought down eight rebounds. Jordan Crump added 11 points while Khai Seargeant contributed eight points.
- DeVeaux’s 27 points is a new career-high, surpassing his previous season and career best of 21 points set against St. John’s Fisher (11/12/2022).
- Amarion Wilson’s 14 points marks his fifth consecutive game with double-digit points.
- The Marlins scored 52 second-half points to topple the Captains.
- The Marlins last defeated the Captains on December 15, 2019, in the ‘Fish Tank’.
- VWU shot 77.78% from the field draining 21-of-27 shots in the second half alone.
- Virginia Wesleyan was 3-for-4 from behind the three-point arch and 7-of-8 from the charity stripe.
UP NEXT
Virginia Wesleyan returns to the court in the New Year on Wednesday, January 4, when they hit the road to take on the WildCats of Randolph College in Lynchburg, VA. The Marlins and WildCats tip-off at 7 PM.
