Norfleet, 3-Point Shooting Lead Mount St. Mary's Past NSU

NORFOLK, Virginia  -- Led by a 31-point effort by Julian Norfleet, Mount St. Mary's shot nearly 70 percent from the floor in a 104-84 victory over the Norfolk State men's basketball team on Friday night at Joseph Echols Hall.

The Mountaineers hit 18-of-25 from 3-point range in breaking NSU's 16-game home winning streak. The Spartans did fare well on the offensive end, hitting close to 60 percent for the game, but NSU (8-7) was unable to overcome The Mount's prowess from long range.

Norfleet hit 11-of-13 overall and had four of the team's 3-pointers to go along with 10 assists and four steals. Mount St. Mary's (4-9) shot 35-of-51 (68.6 percent) overall on the night, including 22-of-29 (75.9 percent) in the first half.



NSU outscored the Mountaineers by two in the second half and committed just two turnovers after having 11 in the first half. Mount St. Mary's had a 20-4 edge in points off turnovers in the first half but failed to score any in the second. The Mount also had a 13-2 edge in fastbreak points in the first but scored only two in that manner after intermission.

Senior Brandon Goode led NSU with 19 points on 9-of-11 shooting, while seniors Anell Alexis and Malcolm Hawkins each tallied 16 on a combined 10-of-15 shooting. The Spartans connected on 32-of-54 (59.3 percent) overall, including 15-of-21 in the first stanza (71.4 percent).

After the Mountaineers missed their opening 3-point attempt, both teams combined to make 20 straight shots in a contest reminiscent of NSU's 115-85 win over Newberry earlier in the year. By the time the next miss came around, at 10:18 on a 3-point attempt by the Mountaineers, they led the Spartans 30-23.

NSU made its first 10 shots of the game, but the Spartans eventually called timeout after a quick layup gave Mount St. Mary's a 14-point edge, 39-25. The Mountaineers pushed it to 19, 47-28, and by as much as 25 in the first half.

The Spartans got no closer than 18 in the early part of the second half before a couple of free throws from Hawkins at 7:56 cut the deficit to 15. An 11-1 run by the Mountaineers, though, pushed their advantage back up to 20 for the rest of the contest.

Junior Jamel Fuentes added 13 points and eight assists for the Spartans.

Rashad Whack had 23 points for Mount St. Mary's, including 15 on 5-of-10 shooting from long range. Will Miller (15 points, 5-of-5 3-pointers), Gregory Graves (11 points) and Byron Ashe (10 points, 3-of-3 3-pointers) also contributed on the offensive end.

NSU will get back into conference play next weekend with a trip to UMES and Delaware State.

Box Score

By Mike Bello, Asst. SID
COURTESY NORFOLK STATE UNIVERSITY SPORTS INFORMATION