Box Score
BRIDGEPORT, Conn. – Led by a career-high 23 points by junior
Devin Willis (Seattle, Wash.) the Post University men's basketball withstood a 23-0 Bridgeport run en route to an 81-72 victory on Wednesday night in non-conference action at Hubbell Gymnasium. The Eagles led by as many as 23 points in the second half before they were forced to hang on to gain their sixth consecutive victory.
Willis finished the contest perfect from three-point range as he sunk all five of attempts from beyond the arc. He was 4-for-4 at the foul line, shot 7-for-9 from the field and totaled five assists. Juniors
Stephen Perry (Westampton, N.J.) and
Jerry Cummings (Queens, N.Y.) added 14 and 13 points respectively. Senior
Jake Wilcox (Kent, Wash.) turned in five assists and three steals.
With Bridgeport (2-5) ahead 9-5 and 15:43 to play in the first half, Post used an 11-2 run to claim a 16-11 advantage with 11:37 to play in the stanza. The spurt spanned 3:12. Junior
Zach Krischer (Port Jefferson, N.Y.) kick-started the run with a three-pointer, while classmates
Travis Carbajal (Oklahoma City, Okla.), Willis and Perry all hit two-point baskets. Wilcox added a pair of foul shots.
Over a span of 1:26 in the final two minutes of the first half, the Eagles used a 7-0 run to take their largest lead of the period. Junior
Effrin Ellison (Waterbury, Conn.) netted the final five points of the spurt and he finished the first half without missing a shot. He was 3-for-3 from the field, including 1-for-1 from beyond the arc. Ellison made both his free throw attempts.
Bridgeport's Ognjen Zoric hit a triple for the Purple Knights with 15 seconds remaining in the half to cut their halftime deficit to 10 points, 40-30.
In the second half, the Eagles used a 7-0 over a span of 1:07 to take its largest lead of the contest. Willis and Krischer hit three-pointers on back-to-back possessions, and Cummings hit a foul shot to cap the spurt. Following the run, Post (6-1) held a 63-40 lead.
However, over a span of 8:15, the Purple Knights scored 23 consecutive points to claim a 66-65 lead with 3:28 to go. Post responded with the next five points including a Carbajal dunk and a Perry triple. In the final 25 seconds of the matchup, Post shot 7-for-8 from the free throw line to hold off Bridgeport.
For the game, the Eagles shot 54 percent (27-for-50) from the field and for the fifth straight game they shot greater than 43 percent from distance. Post converted 11 of 21 attempts from beyond the arc. The team shot 16-for-19 from the foul line and it limited the Purple Knights to just 15 free throws.
The Eagles will host Wilmington in a Central Atlantic Collegiate Conference (CACC) contest on Saturday, Dec. 1. The opening tip is slated for 3 p.m. at the Drubner Center. Post's best CACC start in Division II history was a 3-0 mark in 2007-08.
