The Liberty Flames bounced back from its first loss of the season with a 76-54 win against Alcorn State.

First Half

Liberty utilized a 20-2 run in the opening minutes of the game to seize control, leading 20-4 with 12 minutes left in the first half. During that stretch, the Flames were shooting 72.7% from the field compared to 25% for Alcorn State. Darius McGhee and Keegan McDowell connected on back-to-back 3-pointers to push the Liberty lead to a first half high of 16.

Elijah Cuffee set a new career-high in points in the first half, as the sophomore connected on all 6 of his first half field goal attempts, including 3 from 3-point range, to get to 15 points. His previous career high was 13, set against Gardner-Webb in February.

The Braves were able to stay within striking distance as they connected on 5 of their 10 first half 3 pointers. Liberty led at halftime, 37-25.

Second Half

The Flames would quickly push the lead to 20 points in the 2nd half. Coach McKay was generous with his substitution patterns throughout the game, using 9 players freely. After having just 2 points in the first half, Keenan Gumbs scored 9 straight Liberty points, including a couple of impressive transition buckets and a corner 3 pointer.

Alcorn State continued to hit 3 pointers, several of them tightly contested, to keep the game somewhat manageable. Every time it seemed that Liberty would push the lead to 30 or more, the Braves would hit a 3 pointer. They finished the game 8-for-15 from 3 point range.

Stat Check

Elijah Cuffee set a career high with 15 points, all coming in the first half. He made all 6 of his field goal attempts in the first stanza.

While not having his best offensive game, Lovell Cabbil hauled in 9 rebounds and dished out 4 assists.

Keenan Gumbs (11), Scottie James (10), and Darius McGhee (10) all joined Cuffee in double figures.

For the 3rd time in 5 games, Liberty shot over 50% from the field for the game.

What’s Next?

Liberty will host Savannah State on Sunday at 2pm. The Tigers are 2-4 on the season and ranked #342 according to KenPom. Savannah State and Alcorn State will face off against each other in the Vines Center on Saturday at 2pm.