Box Score

CHATTANOOGA, Tenn. – Behind a double-double performance from veteran point guard Chris Long, the Elon men’s basketball team advanced to the quarterfinals of the 2011 Southern Conference Men’s Basketball Tournament with an 85-74 victory over The Citadel Bulldogs from McKenzie Arena on Friday night. Long netted 21 points on a perfect 11-of-11 night from the charity stripe while dishing 10 assists in the winning effort.

The fourth-seeded Phoenix (14-16) will face the South Division’s top seed College of Charleston tomorrow night at approximately 9:15 p.m. following the 7 p.m. game between Chattanooga and Furman.

“This was a good team victory,” said Elon head coach Matt Matheny. “We went toe-to-toe with a very dangerous Southern Conference team with talented veteran guards. I felt like as a team we really gritted it out in the second half, beating them to loose balls and rebounds to come out with the win.”

Elon was being outrebounded 17-11 after 20 minutes of action, but ended up winning the board battle, 34-31. Four players scored in double figures for the Phoenix — Elon is 6-2 this year when that occurs. Rookie Jack Isenbarger pitched in 16 points off the bench on 6-of-7 shooting from the field, including three makes form beyond the arc, while Drew Spradlin and Ryley Beaumont registered 15 and 14 points, respectively.

The Citadel’s Austin Dahn led the Bulldogs (10-22) with 20 points on 7-of-13 shooting.

Elon shot 51.9 percent from the field in the win, hitting 11-of-22 shots from three-point land. Ranked fifth in the nation in made three-pointers per game, the Phoenix has drained a combined 58 triples in the last five contests.

After allowing The Citadel to shoot 50 percent in the opening half, Elon held the Bulldogs to 38.7 percent (12-of-31) shooting in the final period.

Elon used an 8-0 run to erase a six-point deficit and claim 23-21 edge after Long connected from long distance on the right wing with 9:03 remaining in the first period. The Phoenix would never trail again in the contest, extending its run to 22-10 over an eight minute span to pull ahead 37-31 at the final media timeout of the half.

Long registered a team-high 11 points and five assists in the opening frame to help Elon go into the locker room with a 42-35 advantage, as the Phoenix shot a blistering 53.3 percent (16-of-30) from the field. Spradlin scored eight points despite playing only four minutes due to foul trouble.

The Bulldogs hit 14-of-28 shots from the field in the first 20 minutes and held a 17-11 advantage on the glass. Both squads turned the ball over a combined eight times in the first half, as Elon forced the Bulldogs into six miscues and committed only two.

Elon took a 10-point lead with 17:47 remaining in the second half after Spradlin found Beaumont under the basket for an easy layup, giving the Phoenix a 48-38 advantage.

The Phoenix opened up a 14-point lead with 10:47 to play in the second half after Long found a wide-open Spradlin on the left wing for three to give Elon a commanding 61-47 advantage, forcing The Citadel to call a timeout.

Elon went up by as many as 16 points in the second half, but the Bulldogs battled back and closed the gap to eight points, 75-67, with 3:24 to play after a Zach Urbanus triple. The Phoenix made good on free throws over the final minutes to claim the victory.

The Phoenix is now 7-1 in its opening game of the Southern Conference Tournament. Elon has faced College of Charleston only once in the league tournament, defeating the Cougars, 75-61, in the semifinals of the 2007-08 tournament. Elon lost its only meeting with CofC this season, falling 85-67 on Feb. 9 in Alumni Gym.