Liberty (6-1) picked up its first ever win over a Big 12 opponent on Sunday night in the Virgin Islands as the Flames defeated Kansas State (4-2), 67-65, in the semifinals of the 2024 Paradise Jam. With the win, the Flames advance to the championship game of the event on Monday night, taking on McNeese at 8 p.m. on ESPN+.
“A really good Big 12 team,” said Liberty head coach Ritchie McKay of the Wildcats. “They’ve got a loaded squad over there. Coach Tang does a terrific job. I think after having some of the games we already played in – at Seattle U came down to the wire, Florida Atlantic came down to the wire, and this one – you could see our guys had a great sense of composure. They had a togetherness. They did the little things that helped us come out with a victory.”
The game came down to the final second. With the Flames trailing by one, guard Colin Porter drilled a three-pointer to put Liberty back on top by two with 2:15 remaining. Owen Aquino would add two free throws to the lead, putting the Flames up by four with just 50 seconds left. Kansas State got a bucket and cut it to two at 42 seconds.
After a timeout, Kaden Metheny missed a running layup in traffic late in the shot clock. The Wildcats got the rebound and had three shots, including two three pointers that would have won the game, in the final 5 seconds. All three missed and Liberty moves on, picking up its first win over a high major team since knocking off Villanova in the 2023 NIT.
The Flames closed the first half on a 8-0 run to take a 32-29 lead into the break. Liberty was able to overcome 9 first half turnovers. Isaiah Ihnen led the way in the opening half for the Flames off the bench, including two made three pointers.
In addition to the turnovers, the Flames led at the break despite Zach Cleveland having not scored as he was 0 for 5 from the field. The Liberty forward struggled with the length of the Kansas State front line at the basket, altering several of his shots. He still found a way to impact the game with 6 assists and 5 rebounds in the opening 20 minutes. Meanwhile, Owen Aquino only played five minutes and scored two points in the opening half as he had three fouls.
Porter led the way for the Flames with 17 points. He was 7 of 11 from the field and made 2 of 4 from three.
“Coin Porter, he is one of those players, whatever the team needs in a given part of the game or in a given game that helps us win,” said McKay of his point guard. “He’s won all of his career. He was special tonight.”
Isaiah Ihnen was big off the bench for the Flames in this one. He finished with 16 points and 7 rebounds while making 7 of his 12 field goals and 2 of 4 from three. Kaden Metheny added 13 points.
Aquino, plagued with foul trouble throughout, finished with 8 points and 4 rebounds. He was 6 of 8 from the free throw line. Liberty, who has struggled at the line so far this season, made 10 of 14 from the charity stripe, good for 71%.
Zach Cleveland struggled to finish at the rim as he went up against the length of the Kansas State frontcourt. He did not make a field goal, missing all 8 of his attempts. He only had 2 points but still had a big impact on the game. Cleveland finished with 9 rebounds and 8 assists.
Liberty has spent much of the first month of the season away from home, with several tough tests. The Flames have weathered the storm so far to have a great start to the season.
“The endurance, not only physically but mentally that our guys have had has been special,” McKay said. “Really hard way to start the season and we have another one tomorrow.”
The Flames will play for the Paradise Jam championship on Monday night at 8 p.m. against McNeese. The Cowboys, led by head coach Will Wade, are 4-2 on the season, and have defeated Ilinois State (76-68) and Longwood (84-69) to reach the championship.
