SALISBURY, Md. – The Salisbury University men's basketball team showed no signs of rust after a 10-day layoff, rolling to an 81-54 victory inside Maggs Gymnasium to hand the Griffins of Gwynedd Mercy their second loss of the campaign on Saturday evening.
The Sea Gulls (13-5) controlled the opening seven minutes, sprinting out to a 16-2 advantage led by five points from
Jordan Oates and four from
Leon Elung. Gwynedd Mercy punched back with 10 of the next 13 points, narrowing the margin to seven with just over nine minutes left, 19-12.
After four straight Sea Gull points, the Griffins (13-2) pieced together a 10-0 run to jump within one tally of the lead, 23-22. Elung scored six points to power a 12-3 SU stretch spanning the final five minutes of the half, thumping a maroon and gold stamp on the opening period to take a 35-25 advantage at the break.
SU found some of its rhythm from the start of the contest, scoring eight straight to highlight a 10-3 run and go up by 17 through just under five minutes, 45-28. The Griffin shots began to fall over the ensuing eight minutes, with the teams splitting the stretch 16-15 in favor of GMU.
The Sea Gulls scored nine straight to open another mammoth run, claiming 16 of the next 19 points on 7-of-9 shooting with seven from Oates leading the charge. The guests scored seven against SU's five in the final three minutes, setting the final score at 81-54.
GAME NOTES
- Leon Elung dropped a career-high 20 points on 10-of-12 shooting, his new highs for field goal makes and attempts, while adding seven rebounds, three assists and a pair of steals. His trifecta of helpers tied his Sea Gull best as well.
- Brendan Davis dished out a career-high 11 assists in the win, pairing the helpers with 11 points and six rebounds to secure his first career double-double. Davis has distributed four or more assists in 11 contests throughout 2024-25.
- Jordan Oates returned to a tie for the NCAA Division III lead in double-doubles, securing his 14th of the season with 18 points and 14 rebounds while turning in pairs of steals and stuffs. Oates moved into a tie with Kevin Cromer '93 for second in program history in offensive rebounds, nabbing six off the glass in the win.
- The Sea Gulls shot 52.5 percent (32-of-61) from the floor, 38.1 percent (8-of-21) from beyond the arc and 56.3 percent (9-of-16) from the stripe in the squad's 13th win of the campaign.
The Sea Gulls wrap the month of January next Thursday, Jan. 30th when the Banana Slugs of UC Santa Cruz trek to the east coast, with the Coast-to-Coast Athletic Conference (C2C) bout tipping off at 6 p.m. inside Maggs Gymnasium. Tickets can be purchased
online.
Salisbury University is a proud member of NCAA Division III with primary membership in the Coast-to-Coast Athletic Conference, along with affiliate membership in the New Jersey Athletic Conference (football, men's & women's swimming) and the Coastal Lacrosse Conference (men's lacrosse). With over 500 student-athletes in 23 varsity sports, SU is recognized as one of the nation's most competitive intercollegiate athletics programs regardless of division, featuring dedicated coaches and staff that foster excellence on and off the field. The Sea Gulls have won a combined 23 team national championships, 24 individual national championships, and 201 conference championships, and have produced 50 Academic All-Americans.
To Make Tomorrow Yours at Salisbury University, and learn more about Sea Gull Athletics' tradition of excellence, visit www.SUSeaGulls.com or follow on social media @SUSeaGulls.
