Box Score RICHMOND, VA- The Chowan University men's basketball team earned an 87-73 win over Virginia Union University on Saturday evening. The victory snapped a three-game losing streak for the Hawks. Chowan improves to 11-9 overall and 5-6 in CIAA play. Virginia Union slips to 6-15 on the season and 2-9 in league play after the setback.
The Hawks had five players score double-digit points in the win.
Kyree Bethel led all players in the contest with 24 points while
Kortez Smith chipped in 15 points for Chowan.
Jalen Marshall tallied 12 points and
Carlos Arroyo and
Trevis Buckhanon each totaled 10 points.
The Panthers were led by D'Andre Bullard with 20 points while Ray Anderson and Robert Valentine added 13 points apiece. Avery Jirmnson scored 12 points.
Chowan shot 66% from the floor and 9-18 from three-point range to earn the win. Virginia Union finished the game with a 47.4 shooting percentage.
Jirmnson opened the contest with a bucket for Virginia Union. Bethel's three-pointer on the next possession shifted the momentum in favor of the Hawks but Jirmnson promptly answered back with a layup to give the Panthers a 4-3 edge. Virginia Union built their lead to ten points (17-7) by the 12:51 mark in the contest. Trailing 19-9, Chowan battled back and chipped away at the deficit to pull within one point (25-24) with 7:27 remaining before halftime. The Hawks stayed close on the Panther's heels and regained the lead with 4:38 left in the first half when Bethel's three-pointer made the score 31-29 in favor of Chowan.
Bethel added a layup for Chowan to extend the Hawks' lead to 33-29 before back-to-back three-pointers by the Panthers gave Virginia Union a slight 35-33 edge. Arroyo's three-pointer and layup combined with
Warren Powers' bucket gave Chowan a 40-35 advantage heading into halftime.
The Hawks stayed hot after halftime and built their lead to as many as 11 points (52-41) with 17:04 left in the game. Virginia Union responded with a 17-8 run to pull within two points, making the score 60-58 with 11:02 left to play. Chowan held onto the lead and worked their way back to a double-digit lead, 72-62, at the 6:22 mark. The Hawks held the Panthers at-bay for the remainder of the contest and clinched the 87-73 win with a layup by Smith.
Chowan returns to action on February 2nd when they travel to take on Catawba College. Tip-off for the nonconference contest is slated for 7:00pm.
