SALEM, W.VA. – The Chowan Men's Basketball team suffered a 98-96 loss at the paws of the Salem Tigers on a buzzer beater on the road in non-conference action on Thursday afternoon.
THE BASICS
FINAL | Chowan 96, Salem 98
RECORDS | Chowan 8-12, Salem 14-7
LOCATION | Salem, W.Va. (Davis Gym)
INSIDE THE BOXSCORE
Khalil Ridges had the hot hand in the contest lead a trio of Hawks with 20+ points. Ridges recorded a career-high 27 points knocking down seven triples. Jaylen Dilliard also recorded a career-high 25 points with five three pointers.
BJ McLaurin recorded his 12th double-double of the season with 21 points and 12 rebounds. Jamal Thomas missed a double-double with nine points and nine assists. McLaurin's season rebound total is now the most by a Hawk in DII history passing Lando Morrison from 2009-10.
The 96 points are the most the Hawks have scored in a game since Nov. 17, 2017 in a win over Mid-Atlantic Christian.
HOW IT HAPPENED
First Half:
Both teams jutted out to a 5-5 tie as Jaylen Dilliard knocked down a triple to put the Hawks on the board. BJ McLaurin added a jumper off an assist from Dilliard. Tahkey Williams added a layup and Khalil Ridges connected from deep to double up the Tigers 10-5.
Salem countered with a 5-0 run to even the score. Khalil Ridges dialed up another long distance shot and Ja'Darien Wade scored in the paint and converted the and-one to lead 16-12. Salem pushed ahead 17-16 before Jaylen Dilliard connected from deep to regain the lead.
The Tigers went on an 8-1 run as Michael Kelly went 1-2 from the stripe to lead 25-20. Jamal Thomas slowed the run with a layup. Isaiah Lewis added a layup to maintain the pace. Once again the Tigers went on the prowl to lead 36-26. Lewis connected from the floor during the run.
Tahkey Williams and Ja'Darien Wade scored before Salem led 44-30. Khalil Ridges helped aid a 13-0 run to end the half with a three pointer. BJ McLaurin capped off a three point play with a freebie. McLaurin and Jaylen Dilliard added a bucket each in the paint before Jamal Thomas finished off the run with the old-fashioned three point play.
Second Half:
Chowan continued their run over the next six-plus minutes that recorded a 32-7 run. Jaylen Dilliard knocked down a jumper to hand the Hawks the lead 45-44. Khalil Ridges knocked down a triple before Salem answered at the other end for their first basket of the half.
Khalil Ridges knocked down two more triples and a layup along with a free throw by Jaylen Dilliard to push the lead to 57-47 before the media timeout. BJ McLaurin finished off another three point play and tallied another basket to offset the scoring by the Tigers.
Salem would go on a 10-2 run with BJ McLaurin adding a pair from the stripe to trim the deficit to 64-60 with 10:19 remaining. Jaylen Dilliard added a jumper to end the run. Khalil Ridges and Dilliard knocked down triples to push the lead back to double-digits. Dilliard connected twice from deep to maintain the double-digit lead, 78-67.
BJ McLaurin added five points to offset the Salem rally. Jaylen Dilliard converted from the stripe for a pair and Jamal Thomas knocked down a jumper to give the Hawks a 12 point advantage with 3:46 remaining.
From that point, Salem outscored the Hawks 21-9 going 8-9 from the floor. The Tigers would force four turnovers down the stretch. Salem would take a 95-94 lead with 23 seconds remaining. Jamal Thomas gave the Hawks the one point lead back with 16 seconds left, 96-94.
Chowan called a timeout to apply the pressure on the final possession. Salem countered the pressure to find the buzzer beating three pointer to take the victory 98-96.
UP NEXT
Chowan returns home to take on Emmanuel in Conference Carolinas action on Saturday, February 8. Tip-off is slated for 4pm.
