WILMINGTON, N.C. – Senior Zac Ervin scored a season-high in points to lead the Elon University men's basketball team in a 62-54 setback at UNCW on Monday night, Jan. 16, at Trask Coliseum.
 
Ervin scored 20 points and knocked down five three-pointers in the contest for his fifth straight double-digit effort. Sean Halloran added 15 for Elon (2-17, 0-6 Colonial Athletic Association). The Orlando, Fla., native was 6-of-12 from the field.
 
Amari Kelly led UNCW (15-5, 5-1 CAA) with 13 points while grabbing 14 rebounds. Donavan Newby contributed 11 points for the Seahawks. Kelly grabbed six boards on the offensive end while going 4-of-7 from the field.
 
THE RUNDOWN
• Both teams got off to a slow start, scoring a combined six points in the first four-plus minutes as Elon held a 4-2 lead into the first media timeout.
• Elon took an 8-4 lead on a Sam Sherry putback, but the Seahawks went on an 8-2 run to take their first lead at 12-10 on a Newby three-pointer.
• The Seahawks took a 20-11 lead on a layup by Kelly with 6:56 left in the half for their largest advantage at that point. The Phoenix followed with a 14-5 run which included four three-pointers from Ervin. A layup from Max Mackinnon concluded the run and tied the contest at 25-all with 3:57 left in the first half.
• UNCW broke the tie with a three-pointer from Maleeck Harden-Hayes with 3:42 left in the first half, but that would be the final points of the opening period as the Seahawks went into the break ahead 28-25.
• UNCW took a five-point lead, 32-27, after a Trazarien White layup early in the second half, but Elon battled back with a 7-1 run to retake the lead, 34-33, on a Halloran layup with 14:46 left in the period.
• Elon expanded its lead to three, 36-33, on a John Bowen III dunk on the next possession, but UNCW tied the game with a three by Eric Van Der Heijden. Both teams traded threes after Van Der Heijden responded again to a Torrence Watson triple to level the game at 39-all.
• Van Der Heijden's three-pointer started a 14-1 run for the Seahawks, as UNCW was able to move ahead by ten, 50-40. The run coincided with the Phoenix not making a field goal for nearly 10 minutes over that stretch.
• A pair of back-to-back threes from Ervin and Halloran helped break the field-goal drought to bring Elon within four, 50-46, with 2:56 left in the game.
• Despite holding the Seahawks to no made field goals for a three-minute stretch, Elon could not get any closer with UNCW coming away with a 62-54 win.
 
NOTES
• Ervin had his first 20-point outing since scoring a career-high 29 points versus Bluefield College on Nov. 14, 2021. The Gate City, Va., native was also one three-pointer shy of matching his season-high in triples.
• Bowen III matched his career-high with 10 rebounds for the Phoenix while scoring four points with a pair of steals and two blocks against his former team. Bowen III was a member of the UNCW program from 2019-21.
• Bowen III's performance helped the Phoenix win the rebounding battle over the Seahawks, 39-38. The Phoenix had 14 offensive rebounds in the game, its second-best outing on the offensive glass this season.
• With the loss, UNCW improves to 16-14 all-time in the season series with the Seahawks winning the past four matchups.
 
UP NEXT
The Phoenix returns to its home floor at Schar Center hosting Towson next Saturday, Jan. 21. That game is set for a 4 p.m. start time and will air on FloHoops.