ELON, N.C. – On its home floor for the first time in nearly a month, the Elon University men's basketball team had a great showing in front of its home fans with a 79-56 victory over Wofford on Saturday, Dec. 7 at Schar Center.
 
The Phoenix (6-3) won its third straight game overall with Sam Sherry leading the charge offensively with a season-high 22 points. Nick Dorn added 15 points while TK Simpkins contributed 11. Matthew Van Komen stuffed the stat sheet with 12 rebounds, four assists while having a season-high six blocks – tying for the second-most in a game in school history.
 
Wofford (4-6) had three players in double figures with Corey Tripp leading the way with 12 points. Justin Bailey and Jackson Sivills both added 11 for the Terriers.
 
THE RUNDOWN
• The Terriers opened the game with a three-pointer, but the Phoenix answered with an 11-0 run capped off by a dunk from Van Komen that forced a Wofford timeout with the Phoenix ahead 11-3.
• The Phoenix held a 15-9 lead after TK Simpkins scored off a Wofford turnover with 11:15 left in the first period. The Terriers came back with an 8-2 run to tie the game at 17-all with 7:47 left in the opening half.
• Wofford tied the game again at 20-20 after a three-pointer by Anthony Arrington with 7:04 left in the half. A triple answered by Andrew King started an 8-0 run for the Phoenix, taking a 28-20 advantage with 4:57 left in the first period. Elon would continue to hold an eight-point lead after Sherry knocked down a pair at the line to give the Phoenix a 32-24 lead.
• The Terriers cut their deficit down to five, 34-29, after a Tripp three with just 28 seconds left in the first period. After a Phoenix timeout, Issac Harrell got the three points back with a triple of his own with seven seconds as Elon went into the break ahead 37-29.
• Elon opened the second half with a Sherry jump hook to put the maroon and gold ahead by double-digits, 39-29. A layup from Kyler Filewich brought the Terriers within eight, 39-31, after a few seconds to start the half.
• The Phoenix went on a 14-2 run over the next six-plus minutes, taking a 53-33 advantage after TK Simpkins hit a pair of free throws with 13:06 left to play. Elon kept it a 20-point game, 56-36, after a three-pointer made by Sherry with 12:26 left in the contest.
• Wofford would trim its deficit as low as 15 points in the second half, 65-50, on a three-pointer by Tripp with 5:25 remaining. The Phoenix however erased any thoughts of a Terriers' comeback with a 12-0 run to give Elon its largest lead of the game, 77-50. Both teams would play out the clock before settling on the final score of 70-56 in favor of the hosts.
 
NOTES
• Sherry scored 20 points for the first time this season and for the third time in his career. His 22 points were two off his career-high of 24 that he set versus Johnson & Wales (Charlotte) on Dec. 11, 2022. The Mechanicsburg, Pa., native was 8-of-13 from the floor while knocking down a career-best three triples, going 3-of-6 from beyond the arc.
• Dorn was 5-of-9 from the field while knocking down 4-of-6 from downtown. The Charlotte native has hit at least two or more triples in eight of his nine games this season.
• The win increased the Phoenix's all-time ledger over Wofford to 31-21. It was just the second win against the Terriers in the past eight games.
• Elon held the Terriers to 28.8 percent shooting, the lowest field goal percentage by an opponent this season. It is the second time this season that the Phoenix has held an opponent to less than 30 percent from the field, after allowing just 29.7 percent at Penn.
• Van Komen added his seventh multi-block game of the season while tying his career-high in rejections. The Lehi, Utah, native tied Lucas Troutman and Michael Graham for the second-highest blocked shot total in school history.
• TJ Simpkins tied his career-high with seven assists to lead the Phoenix. Overall, Elon had 19 assists in the game, tying its season-high.
• Elon shot 60 percent from the field (28-of-47) and 50 percent from the three-point line (11-of-22). The Phoenix also won the rebounding battle, 40-34, and had a 13-4 advantage in fast break points.
 
UP NEXT
The Phoenix is back at home next Saturday, Dec. 14, hosting University of Virginia Lynchburg. That game is scheduled for 7 p.m. and will stream on FloCollege.