Blackburn Men's basketball won their SLIAC conference matchup against the Gorloks of Webster University on Tuesday, March 16th. The game went into double overtime, until the Beavers managed to secure the win with a final score of 90-86.
Chanz Aldridge was on display for the entire game. In the first half, he led the Beavers with 17 points. He also had an assist and a steal, as well as three rebounds. Jarrius Burnett was closest behind Aldridge at the half, with eight points. The Beavers were trailing 35-34 going into halftime, although a pair of highlight reel plays gave them the momentum that fueled their strong second half.
With just 30 seconds left in the first half, David Lopez went up for a layup that he scored and drawed the foul call on. Unfortunately, Lopez came down hard on his left arm, and was forced to come out of the game right before the half ended. The score was 35-31, Webster leading, with only 20 seconds left in the half. After a missed shot by the Gorloks, Jarrius Burnett got the defensive rebound for the Beavers, and then nailed a half court shot before the halftime buzzer sounded. This gave the Beavers strong momentum, and a one point defecit entering halftime.
The second half of the game was even closer than the first. Blackburn opened up the second half with a quick layup by Javon Stovall, which gave them the early lead in the half. Stovall was able to rack up an impressive 14 points during the second half. He also obtained four offesnive rebounds, each of which came at crucial times during the half. Bryson Kirby was also a key aspect in the second half. He entered the second half with only four rebounds, however he finished the second half with thirteen total rebounds, four of which were offensive rebounds. Christian Wagner managed to tally nine points during the second half, as well as two assists and two blocks.
With only 14 seconds left in regulation, the Beavers were down 71-68. Jarrius Burnett inbounded the ball to Chanz Aldridge, who made a quick move and then shot a contested three that he drained. This tied the game at 71, and eventually led to the game going into overtime.
The first overtime period was just as close as the rest of the game. Both the Beavers and Gorloks scored eight points in the first overtime period. Once again, Chanz Aldridge tied the game in the most crucial moment. He scored a highly contested layup with only four seconds left, which ultimately sent the game to the second overtime period. Javon Stovall was responsible for four points during the first overtime period, and Christian Wagner scored the other two points.
In the second overtime period, Jarrius Burnett nailed an early three that gave Blackburn an 84-81 lead. After the Gorloks chipped away at the lead, Javon Stovall drew a foul that resulted in two free throws that he made. Chanz Aldridge was able to put the team on his back once more, as he nailed yet another clutch three-pointer with 25 seconds left on the clock. This gave Blackburn an 89-86 lead. After being forced to foul, Webster found themselves down 90-86, as Stovall drained one of his free throws. This ultimately secured the game for the Beavers.
Aldridge led the Beavers in points, totaling 27 for the entire game. Stovall finished close behind with 25. Jarrius Burnett finished with 14, and Christian Wagner had eleven. Bryson Kirby led the Beavers in rebounds, tallying 14 total. Stovall finished with seven, while Adridge and Wagner both finished with six. Wagner was the team leader in assists, finishing with six. Stovall and Kirby each tallied five, and Aldridge finished with four. As a team, Blackburn shot 34-85 on field goals, and 15-41 from behind the arc. The team tallied 45 rebounds, 25 assists, seven blocks, and eight steals.
Webster was led offensively by Ethan Hughes. He finished with 18 points. Etienne Rodson was close behind, racking up 17. Wynne Brown Jr. finished with 16 points, while Mark Moore finished with thirteen. Brown Jr. led the Gorloks with four assists. Moore and Rodson each finished with three assists as well.
Defensively, Webster was led by Etienne Rodson, who racked up thirteen rebounds. Markus Becton finished with ten rebounds, and Ethan Hughes tallied eight. The Gorloks had five steals as a team, and two blocks. They shot 33-77 on field goals, and 6-21 from behind the arc.
As a result of this game, Blackburn now moves to an overall record of 4-1. Their next matchup will be against Greenville University. The game will be played on Tuesday, March 23rd, at Greenville University. The game is set to start at 7:30 p.m.