In Saturday’s first action, Old Dominion dominated the first half and utilized a 22-0 stretch that started at the 9:24 mark of the first half and carried into the second half, jumping out to to a 31-14 halftime advantage over Kennesaw State.
Kennesaw State didn’t end the drought until the 15:47 mark of the second half, and by that time it was too late.
The Monarchs took the game by a final score of 65-47.
All but one of Old Dominion’s 12 players scored. Ahmad Caver lead the bunch with 14 points while B.J.Stith also contributed 13.
Tyler Hooker lead the losing effort with 18 points and Bobby Parker dropped in 13 points.
In the day’s second game Northern Iowa outplayed Eastern Kentucky, beating them 90-85.
The Panthers were in control most of the way and had a double-digit lead seven minutes into the ball game.
Eastern Kentucky made things interesting late. The Northern Iowa Panthers held a 16-point lead with 4:02 left when Eastern Kentucky stormed back, using a 17-2 run to cut the deficit to one after a Nick Mayo three-pointer with just over a minute left in the game.
A.J. Green sunk a driving lay-up and drew a foul with 25.8 left in the game. He made the ensuing free throw, giving Northern Iowa a four-point lead.
Green then pulled down the rebound after an Eastern Kentucky miss, drew a foul and sank two more free throws, to extend the lead to 89-83.
Eastern Kentucky scored quickly on the next possession and fouled Green again. Green went made one of two from the charity stripe to make the final margin five points.
Northern Iowa had a balanced scoring attack lead by Green with 23 points. Spencer Haldeman added 16 and Luke McDonnell chipped in 13.
Nick Mayo had 27 while Lachlan Anderson put up 14. Also in double digits were Tre King, Kelvin Robinson, Peyton Broughton all had 12.
In the last game of the evening, the UVI Buccaneers put on a show for the home crowd. Their athleticism was on full display as they cruised by the Johnson University Suns, 75-61. At times the Bucs’ lead was as much as 23 points.
Zion Jones, a freshman from St. Croix, earned his first start for the Bucs and his 12 points tied for the team lead with Quinton Bush. Dylan Spriggins and Elijah Bush had 11 each and Harold Cardwell rounded out the double digit scorers with 10.
The Paradise Jam tournament continues Sunday with the semifinals with Oregon State taking on Missouri at 6:30 followed by Kansas State and Penn.
