ETTRICK, V.A. – Virginia State men's basketball moved to 2-0 after taking down Shippensburg 76-71 after trailing by four heading into the halftime break. The Trojans were able to outscore the Raiders 48-39 in the second half which lead to the victory. Over the weekend, the Trojans defeated two of the PSAC's finest teams in Millersville and Shippensburg to earn their first pair of wins of the regular season and defend their home court.  
 
Zach Newkirk led the team with 19 points in the contest, as he shot efficiently from the field hitting 6-of-8 of his shots and going 6-of-6 from the free throw line. He also accounted for a steal, a block, a rebound and a pair of assists. Terrence Hunter-Whitfield (14), Stephan Morris (12) and Tremere Brown (11) all finished in double figures tonight as well. Hunter-Whitfield also had active hands on the defensive end accounting for three steals as Brown and Morris both brought down five rebounds. Brown also doubled as the Trojans rim protector as well as he led the game with two blocks. Francis "BJ" Fitzgerald was the stat sheet stuffer for the Trojans as he accounted for four points along with a team-high six rebounds and five assists.
 
After shooting just 40% from the field in the first half, the Trojans rallied in the second half shooting 58%. VSU shot an efficient 71% from the free throw line while forcing 19 turnovers leading to seven steals. Virginia State's bench outscored Shippensburg's bench 25-9. Heading into next game the Trojans will look to improve in the rebounding category after allowing the Raiders to attain 13 offensive rebounds.

 
How It Happened
 

• The start of the matchup saw VSU take the early lead 10-7 thanks to four quick points from Zach Newkirk with 12:04 left in the first half.

 

• Down but not out, Shippensburg scored six straight points to take their first lead of the game 16-15 with 6:21 left in the first half.

 

• The two would continue to battle back-and-fourth until the Raiders would score five points straight to take a 32-28 lead in the locker room at half time.

 

• The Trojans were able to cut it to a one possession game four times before finally taking the lead 44-43 with 12:45 left to go thanks to a mid-range jumper by Dajour Rucker.

 

• The game saw seven lead changes until the Raiders hit back-to-back three pointers to take a 59-54 lead with 7:24 left in the game.

 

• The after Stephan Morris hit a layup to cut the lead to just three points, Shippensburg extended their lead out to six after hitting a three-pointer.

 

• After the Trojans went on a 6-0 run, they were able to tie the score at 62. Terrence Hunter-Whitfield went 2-of-2 from the foul line to tie the game before Stephan Morris allowed the Trojans to take the lead.

 

• The Trojans were able to get up by as much as six with under a minute to go until Shippensburg landed a dunk and a three-pointer on back-to-back possessions to bring their deficit down to one.

 

• The Trojans were able to hit four straight free throws to ice the game and earn the win 76-71

 
 
 
Up Next
The VSU Men's Basketball will set out for their first official road trip of the season as they head to West Chester of Pennsylvania on Wednesday, November 16 at 7:00 p.m.