Copyright 2016; Wilmington University. All rights reserved. File photo of Omari Dill-Pettiford against Millersville.
LAKEWOOD, N.J. - - Omari Dill-Pettiford scored 26 points while hitting six three-points in the first half to lead the Wilmington University men's basketball team to an 85-60 Central Atlantic Collegiate Conference victory inside the Wellness Center at Georgian Court on Saturday afternoon.
The sophomore guard went 10-of-13 from the field in the first half alone in leading the Wildcats (6-4, 2-1 CACC) to a big halftime lead. The Lions (1-10, 1-5 CACC) only shot 33.3 percent from the field in the first half and finished 35.9 percent for the game.
The Wildcats got off to a quick 7-0 lead in the first 2:27 of the game before Dill-Pettiford hit his first three-pointer of the game with 15:06 left to put the visitors up 12-4. The sophomore than caught fire, sinking five consecutive three-pointers for the Wildcats, capping the personal 15-point run with a triple with 9:02 left in the half to put the Wildcats ahead, 36-16. The Wildcats shot 5-of-6 during the span.
Brian Adkins capped the second half outburst of 49 points with a dunk, capitalizing off a steal from Miles Gillette. The Wildcats went into the break leading 49-31.
Dill-Pettiford may have cooled off at the halftime break, but the rest of the Wildcats remained hot, as a 16-3 run stretched the visitors lead out to 71-43 with 12:01 to play in regulation. Nick Richards capped the run with a dunk after a Lions' miss and Brian Adkins defensive rebound.
Drew Johnson hit the team's 12th and final three-pointer of the game with 4:52 to play to put the Wildcats ahead 80-51 before the lead grew as large as 30 points with 2:28 left before settling on the final score.
The Wildcats shot 48.4 percent from the floor for the game, including going 12-of-27 from three-point territory. They also turned 15 Lions turnovers into 19 points at the end other. The Wildcats only turned the ball over nine times in the game.
Dill-Pettiford finished with 29 points, shooting 11-of-18 from the floor including 6-of-11 from three-point land. Richards scored 15 points on 5-of-9 shooting while Tyaire Ponzo-Meek added 14 points on 5-of-9 shooting, including two three-pointers. Johnson rounded out the Wildcats in double digits with 13 points, hitting three three-pointers of his home. Johnson also led the team with eight rebounds and four assists. Masner Beauplan came off the bench to contribute four assists as well.
The Wildcats will look to pick up back-to-back victories when they return to the court on Monday against nonconference foe West Chester. The Wildcats return home to the WU Athletics Complex for a tip-off at 7:00 p.m.