Video Recap at Bottom of Page
NEWARK, Del. - - A healthy helping of offense was just what the Wilmington University men's basketball team needed before Thanksgiving Day, racing out to an 83-67 nonconference victory over Molloy on Wednesday night at the WU Athletics Complex.
When the starters were on the floor, the Wildcats (2-3) outscored the Lions (1-6), 28-3, producing 10 assists and 13 rebounds. Nalik Veasley led the way among the starters, producing a plus/minus scoring difference of 30 points when he was on the court, while also playing the most minutes for the Wildcats (28:55).
All 11 Wildcats that played scored in the game, as the team shot 46.9 percent from the floor for the game, including hitting 12 three-pointers and going 11-of-15 from the foul line. They were sharing the ball as well on Wednesday night, producing a new season high with 22 assists and 30 made buckets.
Nalik Veasley started the game with back-to-back buckets and then Taalib Holloman put in a fastbreak layup and hit a three-point and the Wildcats were off and running with a 9-0 lead. Caleb Matthews hit a three-pointer and the Wildcats led, 16-5, with 13:07 to play in the first half.
But Molloy got going from there, using a 13-1 run to take an 18-17 lead with 7:59 showing on the clock. The Wildcats bounced right back, however, as LJ Carter and Holloman hit back-to-back three-pointers to regain a 27-20 lead. The Lions went scoreless over the final 5:57 of the half, as the Wildcats continue to distance themselves with a Brycen Williams three-pointer and a Taalib Holloman windmill dunk on the break to cap the scoring, giving the Wildcats a 40-20 lead at the halftime break.
The run continued into the second half, as Kaleb Hedgepeth and Skip Burton scored the first five points, capping a 24-0 run for the Wildcats, stretching the lead out to 45-20. Brycen Williams gave the Wildcats their largest lead of the game with another three-pointer, 56-25, with 15:21 to play in regulation.
Molloy cut the deficit to as few as 18 points at multiple junctions of the second half, but the Wildcats always kept them at an arm's length the rest of the way home. Free throws had Molloy to within 77-60 with 2:43 to play and then a three-pointer had the game to 14 points with 39 seconds left before Eli Gibson put in a reverse layup to settle the score at 83-67.
Taalib Holloman led the Wildcats with 18 points on 7-of-12 shooting. Brycen Williams hit four three-pointers and shot 5-of-8 from the floor for 14 points off the bench. Kaleb Hedgepeth was the third Wildcat in double digits with 11 points, four rebounds, and two blocks. Nalik Veasley finished with seven points and a game-high 15 rebounds to go with four assists and three blocks. Skip Burton had seven points and seven assists.
The Wildcats are back in action on Sunday afternoon when they travel to regionally ranked Pace. The opening tip is set for 1:30 p.m. in Pleasantville, New York.
