December 2, 2006

Boxscore

LAURINBURG, N.C.— Erskine College shot 60.9-percent from the field in the second half while holding host St. Andrews Presbyterian College to 20.0% in the second half as the Flying Fleet rallied past the Knights, 67-42, in Carolinas-Virginia Athletics Conference men’s basketball action Saturday afternoon in Harris Court.

Senior forward Craig Williams (Paris, Ky.) posted a double-double with a game-high 25 points and 10 rebounds to help Erskine improve to 3-2 on the season and 1-2 in the CVAC. Knights (2-4 overall; 0-3 CVAC) junior forward Taiwon Grooms (Landover, Md.) countered with his own double-double that consisted of 14 points and a game-high 13 boards.

SAPC jumped out to an 11-0 lead to start the game after holding the Fleet scoreless for the first five minutes. The Knights, who maintained the lead for the whole first half, led by as many as 13 points in the opening frame. However, a senior Matt Odom (Six Mile, S.C.) three-pointer and a classmate Tom Heffernan (Memphis, N.Y.) layup in the final minute cut the Erskine deficit to 37-32 before halftime.

Williams, who scored 17 of his 25 points after the break, led the comeback as the Flying Fleet converted on 14-of-23 shots in the second half. The Knights only made five of their 25 attempts in the final stanza as Erskine out scored SAPC 35-15 in the last 20 minutes en route to the 15-point victory.

Grooms’ 13 boards (which tied a career-high) held St. Andrews to a slim 38-32 rebounding advantage but 14 Knights turnovers turned into 18 points for the visitors.

Junior TJ Taylor (Gastonia, N.C.) drained 19 points and had a game-high three steals for the Flying Fleet while freshman Brandon Wright (Goose Creek, S.C.) cashed in seven points.

Sophomore Keith Josey (Suffolk, Va.) had 11 points for the Knights while senior Richard Stone (Williamsburg, Va.) and junior Marcus Hoke (Charlotte, N.C.) each tallied 10 points. Stone pulled down eight boards and junior Jeff Worley (Charlotte, N.C.) dished out a game-high five assists.

St. Andrews will next be gearing up for NCAA Division I opponent North Carolina A&T on Tuesday. First tip is scheduled for 7:30 p.m. Erskine visits non-conference Lander University on Monday at 8:00 p.m.