Undefeated Liberty Flames Men’s basketball team beats University of North Florida Ospreys
Rain fell on Liberty University’s campus in a steady patter all afternoon and into the night of Saturday, Jan. 19. But the typical Lynchburg rainstorm did not keep Liberty sports fans from coming out to the Vines Center in full force.
Almost 5,000 individuals, including 2,200 Liberty students, were on hand to scream, chant and cheer as the Flames men’s basketball team overcame a slow start to squeeze past the University of North Florida Ospreys, 70-64.
Rallying from a halftime deficit, Liberty improved to 16-4 overall, including a perfect 9-0 at home and 5-0 in ASUN Conference play.
“It was really good for our team to have to play in such a hard-fought game,” Flames Head Coach Ritchie McKay said. “I knew North Florida was good and they would present a challenge.”
Tied 59-59 with five minutes left, Liberty clamped down on defense to secure the win, as they held the Ospreys (9-11, 3-2 in the ASUN) to only one made field goal in the critical closing stretch.
DUNK — Senior transfer Keenan Gumbs came to Liberty from Schreiner University.
“That’s something that we need to have every night,” junior guard Caleb Homesley said. “We need to hold teams to scoring droughts, and I think that that helped us win the game tonight.”
Homesley had two blocks, seven rebounds and scored 10 of his 14 points in the second half. One of his rejections started a game-changing sequence that ended with teammate Myo Baxter-Bell converting on a layup to put the Flames up 61-59 with 4:18 to play.
After Baxter-Bell’s bucket, Liberty would not relinquish the lead the rest of the way.
“Our defense always wins out,” Baxter-Bell said. “We can be tough to play against on the defensive end and we let everything else fall in place.”
Baxter-Bell, a junior from Cincinnati, Ohio, was a dominant force all night. He scored 10 points with four rebounds and hyped up the Flames and their fans on multiple occasions.
“I hope that’s what I always bring,” Baxter-Bell said of his energy. “I feel like a lot of players look at me for a voice and for that leadership, so I take that role seriously.”
But for all the highlight moments for the Flames, it took some time for the team to get going.
Led by forward Noah Horchler, the Ospreys jumped out to a 17-9 lead with 11:29 remaining in the first half while taking advantage of a slow start by Liberty’s balanced scoring attack.
Horchler scored eight of North Florida’s first 17 points, but he finished with only 16 points overall as foul trouble stunted his aggressiveness in the second half. The Ospreys’ leading scorer was guard Ivan Gandia-Rosa, who had 19 points and four assists while making 4-of-9 from three-point range.
“They’re a really good team,” junior forward Scottie James said of North Florida. “They made us work a lot offensively and defensively.”
According to James, it was one of the toughest wins of the year for a Liberty team that already has road victories over UCLA, Navy and Florida Gulf Coast this season.
After winning the ASUN co-player of the week award, James led the Flames in scoring for the fourth time in the past five games as he poured in 18 against North Florida to go along with six rebounds. Two of his points came on a vicious alley-oop dunk in the first half that thrilled the crowd.
POPULARITY — The Flames hosted nearly 5,000 fans in their game against UNF.
The wet and chilly night outside the Vines Center did not dampen the spirits of the 4,958 in attendance as they found numerous reasons to explode in excitement.
“I thought tonight we weren’t quite at our best, but I think North Florida had a lot to do with it,” McKay said. “And I think our fans had a lot to do with the outcome of the game.”