URBANA, Ohio – Jordan Bradley tied his career-high with 21 points and
Mario Lacy Jr. logged his first career double-double with 18 points and 13 rebounds to lead Urbana University men's basketball past Davis & Elkins College, 83-76, Saturday at the Grimes Center.
UU (3-7, 2-4 MEC), which produced a season-high point total, has now recorded back-to-back home wins for the first time since mid-December 2016. First-year head coach
Josh Gibson earned his 99th career win.
Additionally, the Blue Knights now lead the all-time series over Davis & Elkins 3-2. Saturday's meeting was the first matchup as league opponents after D&E joined the Mountain East this year.
Bradley knocked down a career-best three treys, snapping a 2 for 13 drought from beyond the arc, and finished 8-of-14 from the field. He also dished out seven assists and had five steals. Lacy tied his season-high with nine made field goals on 69-percent shooting while hauling a career-high 13 rebounds. The freshman from Euclid is averaging 17.0 points and shooting at a 73-percent clip over the previous three games.
Shaunn Monroe reached double figures with 14 points, often finishing strong at the rim over taller defenders, while
Tehree Horn chipped in with 12 points and season-high seven boards.
Drew Thomas played 30 minutes in his first start as a Blue Knight and handed out a career-high eight assists.
After leading 33-25 at the half, Urbana blitzed the visitors with a 12-5 run over a three-minute span to open up the second half. Bradley accounted for eight points during the spurt with a pair of three's, the second of which put Urbana in front 45-30 with 17 minutes remaining.
The Blue Knights remained in control the rest of the way as Lacy's layup made it 74-62 with under five minutes left.
Davis & Elkins tried to climb back by getting within three points twice down the stretch, but Urbana responded to each threat.
D&E's Donte Doleman completed a three-point play to make it 79-76 with 27 seconds, and the Senators had a chance to tie after UU's front-end miss at the line but Bradley came up with a big steal. Horn and Bradley would eventually knock down free throws to seal the win.
Urbana shot 52 percent overall while limiting Davis & Elkins to only 42-percent shooting from the floor. The Blue Knights outscored their new league rivals 22-10 in points off turnovers and 44-30 on points in the paint.
Doleman paced the Senators with a game-high 23 points. Three others reached double figures including Kyle Leslie (13), Myles Monroe (11) and Elliot White (11).
UP NEXT: Urbana will have nearly a week to prepare for Friday's 7:30 p.m. home game against Tiffin. The former longtime NAIA rivals will meet for the first time since Nov. 26, 2008. The Dragons hold the edge in the all-time series, 43-31.
