The Liberty defense was exceptional as the Flames improve to 3-0 for the second straight season with a 65-39 win over South Carolina State, setting the school record for the fewest points allowed against a Division I opponent.
The Flames allowed just 13 points in the first half while 10 different players scored for Liberty throughout the game.
Both teams struggled on offense to start the game as the first points of the game were scored five minutes and 11 seconds into the game. Both teams started the game a combined 2-20 from the floor but Kyle Rode came off Liberty’s bench and provided a spark for Liberty’s offense as the Flames went on a 15-2 run late in the first half.
Georgie Pacheco-Ortiz got out of his shooting slump as he led the Flames with 12 points as he and the rest of the team shot 51 percent from the floor in the second half to pull away from the Bulldogs.
“We try and measure the quality of our offensive efficiency on the looks that we get, and we got great looks (early). We just didn’t make them,” Liberty coach Ritchie McKay said. “I think it snowballed a little bit and we kept looking up at that scoreboard. We were missing point blank shots and missing them and this team is too talented to beat itself on the offensive end. I wasn’t worried and I think South Carolina State did a good job defensively against Memphis and they did a good job tonight against us. Coach Garvin is doing a good job in growing their program.”
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