Liberty (17-5, 8-1) picked up a big conference win at home over Stetson (11-9, 6-3) on Thursday night, 74-45.

“Happy with the win obviously, never take that for grated, very grateful,” said Liberty head coach Ritchie McKay. “I have a ton of respect for Stetson. I’ve coached against Coach Jones, we’ve played Stetson the last five years. They are always a tough out. Pleased with the effort, nice to see a balanced attack. This is a mature group, we try and take what the defense gives us.”

The Flames were able to get into the paint and score seemingly at will for most of the night against the Hatters. Liberty outscored Stetson, 46-22, in points in the paint while only making 6 of 27 from three point range. Five Liberty players reached double figures, led by Darius McGhee with 15. Kyle Rode added 14 points while Brody Peebles and Shiloh Robinson each had 13 and Colin Porter chipped in 11.

Liberty will play host to Florida Gulf Coast on Saturday at 7 p.m. to conclude the two-game home stand. The Eagles are currently 14-8 overall and 4-5 in ASUN play following their loss at Queens Thursday.

FLAMES PLAYING SHORT-HANDED

Liberty was playing with a less than full hand on Thursday night as Isiah Warfield and Zach Cleveland missed the game. Warfield was held out as he has been in concussion protocol since Saturday’s game at North Florida when he took a hard hit late in the game. Cleveland has missed five straight games now as he recovers from a non-COVID related illness.

With those two absences, head coach Ritchie McKay shortened his bench to seven primary players. The starters consisted of Colin Porter, Darius McGhee, Kyle Rode, Joseph Venzant, and Blake Preston. Brody Peebles and Shiloh Robinson were also part of the rotation.

“It is what it is,” McKay said of the injuries. “Zach will have a little bit of a runway. I think Zay may have been able to go. We’re going to always protect the young man, so we were being cautious. I don’t think Zach will be available Saturday, Zay will be a game time decision.”

LIBERTY ATTACKING THE PAINT

Stetson made a concerted effort to run Liberty off the three-point line and the Flames took advantage of it. Despite shooting just 22.2% from behind the arc on the night, Liberty shot 75% from two-point range. The Flames outscored Stetson, 46-22, in points in the paint.

“Whenever anyone sees that we’re leading the country in three-pointers made, obviously the scheme is going to be take away the threes,” said McKay. “It’s very uncommon for Darius McGhee to go 11 for 37 his last couple of games, but a year ago I’m not sure we would have been able to survive that. I think there’s enough experience, depth, maturity, togetherness that would afford us an opportunity to keep being competitive.”

FLAMES LOCK DOWN ON DEFENSE ONCE AGAIN

Entering Thursday night’s game, Stetson had been one of the most explosive offenses in the ASUN. Liberty held the Hatters to a season low in points with 45. Stetson shot just 38.8% from the field and 15.8% from three. The Hatters’ three made three point field goals were also a season low.

“Considering Zach and Zay were out, those are two of our best defenders, I feel like we did a really good job,” McKay said of the team’s defensive effort. “Our assistants had a great scout and prep for them. I think our guys are owning that end of the floor. It’s really helping our cause, especially against a quality team like that.”

McKAY POST GAME PRESS CONFERENCE