DEAN DROPS 21, CAVS FEND OFF SHIPBUILDERS IN 84-60 DEFEAT
Leading scorer Bradley Dean went five-for-six from the arc and dropped 21 points in UVA Wise's 84-60 victory over the Newport News Apprentice School on Saturday, Nov. 19.
The Cavaliers (4-0, 0-0 SAC) came out of the gates strong and never trailed, jumping to a quick 16-2 lead after six minutes of play with the help of two downtown sinkers from Ben Bryson and Dean. Tony Epps Jr. and Karree Smith of The Apprentice School (2-2, 2-1 NSC) retaliated with a jumper each, but not before two shots from Luke Lawson at the charity stripe, a tough driving layup from Ron Ukaj, and a dunk from Joe'l Pettiford led the way for a 24-6 lead before the Shipbuilders were forced to take a timeout.
The Shipbuilders came out stronger after the timeout, drawing two key fouls to push them past the ten-point mark. Back-to-back threes from Shawn Eley and Mikel Miller had put their squad within 14 with less than three minutes to go in the half. A final bucket from Epps Jr. concluded first half-play with the Cavaliers still ahead by 17.
After the break, Dean was once again left open from the arc and sank another three-point basket to jump to a 20-point lead. Jayden Eason and Karree Smith attempted to crawl back with successful drives in the paint, but Apprentice School defense failed to hold off the sharp-shooting trio of Luke Lawson, Grayson Honaker, and Dean who combined for seven three-point shots with less than two minutes to go in the game. The Cavaliers came out on top by a final score of 84-60.
The win marks the first time the men's basketball program won their first four contests since the 2013-14 season, when the Cavaliers defeated King, Virginia Univ. Lynchburg, Urbana, and Notre Dame College.
"We jumped on them quick in the first half, but we found ourselves in cruise control in the second half," Dean said in his postgame interview. "It was a good overall game, but we definitely have some work to do."
Watch the full postgame interview here.
Dean led the game with 21 points, including five three-point buckets and a .727 field goal percentage.
Ukaj tallied a season-high 14 points and eight rebounds to the mix.
Original source can be found here
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