WILMINGTON, Del. - - The District of Columbia stormed back and stole an opening night victory from the Wilmington University men's basketball team, 85-81, on Friday night inside the Joseph West Jones Center on the campus of Goldey-Beacom College.

The Wildcats (0-1) led as late as with 1:20 on the clock and once held as large as a 12-point lead in the contest. The Firebirds (1-0) scored 15 of the final 21 points in the game, overturning a 75-50 deficit with 4:51 to play.

A 7-0 run by the Wildcats pushed a first half lead out to 27-18, with Denim Perkins and Jihad Simpson hitting three-pointers in the spurt. Justin Perez hit back-to-back three-points to expand the Wildcats lead out to 37-27 and then the Wildcats ended the first half on a 6-0 run, getting a Waller jumper, a Perkins steal and layup, and two free throws from Jihad Simpson to take a 45-33 lead into the halftime break.

The Firebirds cut into the leads with a jumper and a three-pointer on back-to-back possession, climbing back to within 54-54 with 13:47 to play. They then took the lead on their next possession with a layup, 55-54, with 13:23 showing on the clock.

A layup from Waller and a three-pointer from Jaylin Horsey pushed the Wildcats back in front, 64-58, while another Horsey three-pointer put the Wildcats ahead, 69-64, with :03 to play. Denim Perkins hits a three-pointer to maintain a five-point lead, 72-67 with 7:16 to play and then Horsey hit another triple with 4:51 to play to make it a 75-70 lead for the Wildcats.

But that is when the Firebirds fought back tying the game, 76-76, before an old-fashioned three-point play gave UDC the lead, 79-78, with 1:19 showing on the clock. Out of a timeout, the Wildcats missed their opportunity with 28 seconds to play and the Firebirds secured the rebound. Another old-fashioned three-point play pushed the Firebirds lead out to 82-78 with 24 seconds on the clock.

Manir Waller and Jaylin Horsey came off the bench to score 16 points each, with Horsey hitting 4-of-7 from three-point territory. Justin Perez scored 13 points while hitting four three-pointers and Skip Burton ended with 11 points and seven rebounds. The Wildcats made 16 three-pointers, shooting 50 percent from deep and 45.2 percent from the floor for the game.

The Wildcats are right back in action on Saturday, squaring off against D'Youville in Goldey-Beacom's Joseph West Jones Center. The opening tip-off is set for 1:00 p.m.