Dobbs Shines In First Career Start As Men’s Basketball Downs UNF In First Installment OF Doubleheader

Historically, Liberty-UNF games have been tight. They have been decided by an average of five points, and no team has won back-to-back games in the series. That changed Friday night.

In the first game of this weekend’s doubleheader, ASUN No. 2 Liberty put on a show, torching the No. 3 Ospreys 73-61 and winning back-to-back games against UNF for the first time in program history. After a COVID-19 case postponed last weekend’s home stand against UNF and a mild ice storm Thursday night made another postponement a possibility, the two teams weren’t about to reschedule again.

“(I’m) really pleased that we got a chance to play,” Coach Ritchie McKay said. “(It was) our fourth game in 27 days, (with) that long break I was very concerned about just how sharp we would be. Though we didn’t execute well in some phases of it, we had an urgency about us that was fun to watch.”

At times this season, the Flames have struggled to impose themselves on opponents, but Friday night saw a team ready to dictate the game’s pace from tipoff. Liberty took the lead just under a minute in and never lost it for the rest of the game, holding a 22-point lead at one point and never leading by less than 11 in the second half.

Liberty has never lost to North Florida at home, and that record did not look in doubt Friday, stretching the Flames home win streak to 33 games at both the Vines Center and the new Liberty Arena.

In a surprise development, freshman guard Drake Dobbs got the nod to start over senior Chris Parker (McKay said Parker arrived late to the game), but Dobbs took the chance to shine in his first start of his career. Dobbs scored four of the first six Flames points, and finished the night with nine in 19 total minutes on the court.

“I found out an hour before the game,” Dobbs said. “I felt super comfortable out there, I just stay within my role … I felt no pressure really.”

Though Dobbs adapted to the game well, the Ospreys did not, often struggling to deal with Liberty’s intensity as the Flames out-rebounded UNF 39-24. Though UNF grew into the game in the second half as forward Carter Hendricksen found his shooting form (scoring a game-high 24 points), the Ospreys could not find a way to narrow the gap with Liberty, shooting 40% from the field and failing to score for the first three minutes of the game.

Efficient ball movement from Liberty saw scoring spread across the roster, but center Blake Preston continued his strong recent form, scoring his third double-double of the season (14 points, 10 rebounds) and slamming home a couple dunks that brought the socially-distanced fans in Liberty Arena to their feet.

Liberty’s first-half output, however, often came from deep, shooting seven-for-nine from 3 in a first half that saw Liberty dictate a tempo that UNF could barely match. UNF’s unique defensive

zone system drew applause from sophomore Kyle Rode, but as the first half flew by, it was clear the Flames had done their homework.

“(UNF is) a great team,” Rode said. “That zone, they own it and that’s a part of their defensive style. Just to come out and get a few early good looks opened things up for us offensively, got them in man some. We just (tried) to make the easy play and take advantage of the opportunities.”

The Flames took in a halftime lead of 45-30 (their highest first-half points haul in ASUN play so far this season).

Rode also had a breakout game, with his partnership with junior Darius McGhee often driving the pace of the game as Rode dished out eight assists and scored 11 points on the night – and McKay affirmed the crucial role the sophomore plays in this developing Flames system.

“He was incredible tonight, not just in his eight assists, but also in the way he connected our team on both ends of the floor,” McKay said. “This is not unexpected, this is who he is – we see it every day in practice.”

Bellarmine University (9-2 in conference) remains top of the ASUN, and as the regular season draws to a close, top spot in the ASUN is still up for grabs – meaning match sharpness moving forward will be crucial.

With the Flames schedule so sparse in January, Dobbs thought last weekend’s surprise game against Lancaster Bible turned out to be crucial in keeping the Flames sharp for this weekend’s doubleheader.

“That game was super important for us,” Dobbs said. “We hadn’t played in a while, it just gave us a lot of flow … The ball was moving, we were swinging around. It’s hard to guard (us) when we’re swinging around and hitting open guys.”

With Liberty looking to continue building on its five-game win streak Saturday night, McKay knows the Flames will need to reset before the second game of the doubleheader.

“We better come ready tomorrow,” McKay said.

Saturday’s game against UNF will tip off at 5 p.m. in Liberty Arena.

John Nekrasov is the Sports Editor. Follow him on Twitter at @john_nekrasov.