ELON, N.C. – Matt Nowlin pumped in 20 points and Jackson Atoyebi chipped in 19 as Elon stormed past The Citadel 73-59 in Southern Conference men’s basketball action Monday night at Alumni Gym for its fourth victory in five games and eighth win in 11 home contests.
The Phoenix (9-14 overall, 5-6 Southern Conference) sprinted to an early 28-13 advantage on a three-point bomb by Montell Watson with 8:01 left in the opening period, marking the first of three 15-point Elon leads in the first half. The Phoenix settled for a 39-28 halftime edge, but eventually built a 73-53 cushion on a layup by Gary Marsh with 2:16 left.
Nowlin (pictured left) sank seven of his 13 shots from the field, including six of his 11 attempts from downtown. His 20-point outburst followed his career-high 24-point explosion at UNC Greensboro on Saturday.
Atoyebi canned seven of his 10 shots from the floor and netted five of his six tries from the free throw line. He also pulled down six rebounds while teammate Cameron Kirby hauled in a contest-best seven boards.
Elon’s Montell Watson scored 14 points and dished out five assists while Marsh added 10 points. Steven Harvin passed out five assists and swiped three steals for the Phoenix. The Bulldogs (4-18, 0-11), who were led by Dante Terry (10 points), landed 12 players in the scoring column.
The Phoenix fired 50.0 percent (26 of 52) from the floor – 52.0 percent (13 of 25) in the opening stanza – while holding The Citadel to a 39.2-percent clip (20 of 51) from the field for the contest. Elon won the battle of the boards 36-32 and dished out 20 assists to nine for the Bulldogs.
Elon also fashioned commanding advantages in points in the paint (28-14), points off turnovers (19-11) and fast break points (9-0) while The Citadel forged edges in second chance points (12-8), bench points (40-17), turnovers (13-14), blocked shots (4-1) and steals (7-6).
Elon returns to action this weekend when it travels to Southern Conference North Division leader East Tennessee State (20-4, 12-0) for a 4 p.m. contest Saturday. The Citadel visits Southern Division co-leader College of Charleston (17-4, 9-2) at 5 p.m. Saturday.
— ELON — Game Box Score
