ELON, N.C. – Four players scored in double figures, including a near double-double from junior Sam Sherry as the Elon University men's basketball team responded with a 77-59 win over Piedmont Triad rival North Carolina A&T on Saturday night, Jan. 6 in a CAA contest at Schar Center.
 
Sherry led the Phoenix (8-7, 1-1 CAA) with 20 points while grabbing a game-high nine rebounds on the night. He was joined in double figures by Rob Higgins, who scored 17 points with eight assists while Nick Dorn had 15 off the bench with five three-pointers. Max Mackinnon rounded out the double-digit scorers for Elon with 13.
 
The Aggies (3-12, 1-1 CAA) were led by Landon Glasper, who scored a game-high 21 points as the lone double-digit scorer for N.C. A&T.
 
THE RUNDOWN
• Both teams had a slow start to the game, with the Phoenix holding a 6-3 lead after the first five minutes of the contest. The Aggies would take an 8-6 lead on a three-pointer by Landon Glasper with 13:27 left in the period.
• A Sherry layup tied the game at eight-all, but the Aggies responded with a 5-0 run to hold a 13-8 advantage. The Phoenix came back to cut the deficit to two, 15-13, after a Nick Dorn three with 9:56 left in the opening half.
• N.C. A&T expanded its lead to six, 19-13, on another jumper by Glasper, but Elon answered with a 10-1 run to take a 23-20 lead after a Higgins three-pointer at the 4:20 mark in the first period.
• Elon posted its largest lead of the opening half, 28-24, after three free throws from Kendall Campbell. The Aggies twice reduced the Phoenix's advantage to one in the final seconds of the half, but a Higgins layup before the horn sent the maroon and gold with a 32-29 advantage going into the locker room.
• The Aggies opened the second half with a 5-0 run to retake the lead, 34-32. Elon however was able to push its lead to five, 41-36, thanks to a mini 6-0 run by Sherry.
• N.C. A&T trimmed the Phoenix's lead to four, 49-45, on a layup with 10:54 left to play. Back-to-back three-pointers from Mackinnon helped the Phoenix post its first double-digit lead of the game, 55-45, forcing a timeout by the Aggies.
• A 6-0 run by the Aggies brought their deficit back to four, 55-51, but Elon hit a barrage of three-pointers during a 9-1 run to go up by 12. Dorn hit a pair of threes in that stretch while Higgins added another as Elon saw its lead grow to 64-52 with 7:01 left to play.
• North Carolina A&T battled to bring its deficit back to single digits, 64-55, after a Glasper free throw. The Phoenix came back with a 9-0 run to push its lead to 18 with Sherry scoring six points in that stretch as Elon led 73-55 with 3:13 left to play.
• The Phoenix's lead would grow by as much as 20 in the final seconds before settling on the 77-59 final score.
 
NOTES
• The win improved the Phoenix to 6-0 on its home floor at Schar Center, extending its best start ever at the six-year facility. The 6-0 ledger is Elon's best start at home overall since 2017-18 when the program also began that season 6-0.
• Elon dominated on the glass, outrebounding the Aggies 53-30. The 53 rebounds tied for the 10th-most for the program in a single-game. It was also the first 50-plus rebound game since the Phoenix grabbed 55 boards at Hofstra in 2022. The maroon and gold also had 18 offensive rebounds, which resulted in 17 second-chance points.
• Sherry and Dorn helped the Phoenix reserves score 38 points on the night. It's the ninth game of the season that the Elon bench has scored 30 or more points.
• The Phoenix shot 14-of-34 from three-point range during the game. The 14 triples are the most for the team so far this season.
• LA Pratt made his first start of the season for the Phoenix. The sophomore guard played 31 minutes and scored five points with seven rebounds and added three assists.
• Higgins scored in double figures for the third straight game. The fifth-year shot 6-of-12 from the floor, the third straight game of him shooting 50 percent or better from the field.
• Dorn tied his season-high with five made three-pointers in the game. The Charlotte, N.C., native posted his third straight double-digit scoring game and eighth of the season.
 
UP NEXT
The Phoenix travels to College of Charleston next Thursday, Jan. 11, for its next contest against the Cougars. That game is scheduled for 7 p.m. and will stream on FloHoops.