The Goldey-Beacom College men’s basketball team has now won three straight games, as the team defeated the University of the District of Columbia Firebirds 86-77 on Wednesday at the Joseph West Jones Center.
The leading scorers of the game for Goldey-Beacom were junior guard Kyle Elliot and freshman guard Nazim Derry who each scored 23 points.
Two other Lightning players scored in double-digits which was junior guard J’Von Winslow (14) and freshman forward Jesiah West (11).
Goldey-Beacom had the advantage in multiple categories in the game which included points in the paint (46-24), fast-break points (19-12), bench points (39-20), rebounds (37-36), blocks (7-3) and steals (14-10).
The Lightning also had the advantage of shooting as well, as the team shot 55.4 %(31-56) and District of Columbia shot 53.8 % (28-68). Goldey-Beacom also bested the Firebirds in three-point shooting as the Lightning shot 53.8 % (7-13) and District of Columbia shot 40.7 % (11-27).
Goldey-Beacom Led By 13 At The Half
The leading scorer for the Lightning in the first half was Nazim Derry who had 13 points. Derry’s teammate, Kyle Elliot was right behind him in scoring as he had 12 points in the first half.
As a team, Goldey-Beacom shot 58.1 % (18-31) in the first half and they also shot 66.7 % (4-6) at the three-point line.
The Firebirds shot 40.6 % (13-32) in the first half and they also shot 36.4 % (4-11) at the three-point line.
In the first half, the Lightning had quick and sneaky hands as the team had 10 steals.
In the early minutes of the first half, the Firebirds had an early 5-2 lead but the Lightning quickly tied the game up and after that, it was a battle between the two teams for the lead for the next five minutes.
At the 12:40 minute mark, Goldey-Beacom would outscore District of Columbia 17-11 to take a 27-20 lead with 5:31 left in the half.
About a minute later, the Lightning would go on a 18-12 run which would increase their lead to 45-32 to end the half. Derry was the leading man of this run as he scored seven of the 18 points.
First Half Stats
Goldey-Beacom shot 58.1 % (18-31) in the first half and the District of Columbia shot 40.6 % (13-32).
The Lightning shot 66.7 % (4-6) at the three-point line and the Firebirds shot 36.4 % (4-11).
The leading scorer for the Lightning in the first half was Nazim Derry who had 13 points.
The leading scorers for the Firebirds in the first half were Kerry Kirkwood, Aaren Smith, Zachary Olukanni and Juanye Colon each scored three points.
Turnovers Hurt Lightning In Second Half But Hang On For Win
The leading scorer in the second half for Goldey-Beacom was Kyle Elliot who had 11 points. Elliot’s teammate, Derry was right behind him as he scored 10 points in the second half.
As a team, the Lightning had regressed in their shooting in the second half as they shot 52.0 % (13-25). Goldey-Beacom took advantage of their time at the free-throw line as the team shot 75.0 % (12-16).
The Firebirds improved their shooting in the second half, as the team shot 41.7 % (15-36) and they also shot 80.0 % (8-10) at the free-throw line.
Goldey-Beacom lost the turnover battle in the second half by 13-6.
The second half started with the District of Columbia outscoring the Lightning 8-5 to pull the lead within 10 points with the score being 50-40 with 15:05 left in the game.
The closest the Firebirds would get to the lead was within seven points where they hit twice, once at the 3:38 minute mark (75-68) and the second one was with 42 seconds left in the game (84-77).
As time was running out in the game, Elliot would hit two free throws to seal an 86-77 win for the Lightning.
Goldey-Beacom travels to Philadelphia to take on Chestnut Hill on December 7th at 3 PM ET.
Team Stats:
FG%: GBC55.4 % % & UDC41.2 %
3P%: GBC53.8 % &UDC 40.7 %
FT%: GBC 68.0 %%&UDC76.9 %
Rebs: GBC37&UDC36
Ast: GBC 15&UDC 17
Stl: GBC 14&UDC10
TO: GBC 20 &UDC18
Blks: GBC 7&UDC3
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