PIKEVILLE, Ky. – Although the nets weren't literally on fire, they were quite busy in UPIKE's 112-92 win against Kentucky Christian on Friday.
UPIKE shot a blazing 64 percent from the field – including 46.7 percent from three-point territory – but the problem was that it allowed Kentucky Christian to shoot 42.4 percent from distance, which was its main form of attack on the evening.
Regardless, the high-octane UPIKE offense got the job done behind Jayvian Delacruz's new career-high 35 point, 10 rebound double-double, the first double-double by a men's player this year.
Four Bears scored in double figures, and besides Delacruz, all of them came from the bench. Jazz Parker (15), Jovontae Carleton (14), and Stanley Perrin (10) were the other double-digit scorers.
Although the final score had UPIKE ahead by a decent margin, there were more ebbs and flows to the game than most UPIKE fans would've liked. Pikeville never trailed in the contest, but thanks to some sharp shooting from the Knights, they trailed by just three with 10:13 left to go.
However a 11-0 Bears run bought Pikeville a comfortable 14-point lead, which ballooned to 17 points shortly thereafter. But it may have been too comfortable, as the Knights were able to slash that lead all the way down to six, and only trailed by seven at halftime.
The second-half dismissal of KCU came in waves, as the Bears went on small runs to continuously build its lead.
For instance, a 7-0 run, mostly from Damon Tobler and Delacruz, gave UPIKE a 14-point lead with less than 13 minutes to go. Tobler got some solid work done with six of his nine total points coming in the second half.
Later, another 7-0 run gave the Bears a 21-point lead. Carelton, who had the final five points of that run, had a breakout performance in the second half with 11 of his 14 points coming after halftime on 4-8 shooting.
Despite the Knights' best efforts, Parker, Carleton and Delacruz' hot shooting kept KCU at bay for the duration of the game.
UP NEXT
UPIKE returns tomorrow with a 4 p.m. matchup with OSU-Mansfield at the East Kentucky Expo Center and again at 3 p.m. Sunday against Ohio-Chillicothe.
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