SALISBURY, NC. – Virginia State men's basketball team earned their second conference win, as the squad was able to hold on to the victory 68-65 while the Blue Bears attempted to force overtime in the final seconds of the game. The squad has now won two of their last three games, as they are now 1-1 in the NC road trip.
 
Terrence Hunter-Whitfield has had the best two-game stretch the Trojans have seen in recent history as he followed his 30-point performance up with a 28-point performance against LC. Hunter-Whitfield grabbed a team-high nine boards while knocking down 3-of-4 of his shots from downtown. Francis "BJ" Fitzgerald scored 19 points on 7-of-13 shooting from the field while grabbing eight rebounds. Michael Melvin contributed nine points along with seven rebounds and two assists on the evening. Aggressive play from the Trojans led to 28 LC fouls and 30 free throws for VSU. LC was held to 14% from three-point range.  
 
How It Happened

• After the Trojans got out to a 6-1 lead in the early goings of the first half, the Blue Bears were able to cut the lead to just two points prior to the first media timeout with the score at 11-9 with 14:33 left in the first half.

 

• LC went on an 8-1 run midway through the quarter which gave them a 19-14 lead with 8:50 left in the first half.

 

• Two turnovers proved to damper the Trojans as the Blue Bears were able to keep VSU at arms length 28-22 with 4:00 left to go in the half.

 

• Thanks to four points late in the half from Hunter-Whitfield, the Trojans were able to cut the LC lead to just three points at 32-29 heading into the locker room at halftime.

 

• The Blue Bears started the half by outscoring the Trojans 10-4 as the home team extended their lead to 44-35 with 15:06 left in the second half.  

 

• Back-to-back buckets from Hunter-Whitfield and a momentum shifting and-one bucket from Fitzgerald helped the Trojans bring the deficit to just two points with the score at 51-49 in favor of the Blue Bears as 8:43 remained in the game.

 

• With 6:06 left in the game, Fitzgerald fought through contact to earn his second and-one play in the second half to put the Trojans up 58-56.

 

• Four unanswered points from LC allowed them to tie the game at 65 with just :34 left in the contest.

 

• While Hunter-Whitfield was able to score three free throws late in the contest to put the Trojans up 68-65, there was still :6 left on the clock for the home team to tie the game with a three ball. Thanks to a great defensive possession from the Trojans they were able to earn their first win of 2022, 68-65.

 
 
Inside the Box Score

• Terrence-Hunter Whitfield followed his first 30-point performance up with 28 points against LC

 

• Virginia State shot 44% from the field while scoring 36 points in the paint

 

• VSU forced LC to shoot just 3-of-21 from beyond the arc

 

• The two teams grabbed an identical 38 rebounds in the contest

 

• The Trojans allowed LC to shoot just nine free throws in the contest

 
Up Next
 Virginia State will wrap of their North Carolina road trip Monday, January 10 at Johnson C. Smith University. The men's team will cap the doubleheader at 7:30 p.m.