(CHAMBERSBURG, Pa.) – Wilson will be heading back to the NCAA Tournament after defeating Keystone 89-68 in the CSAC Tournament Championship in front of a capacity crowd on Saturday afternoon. It's back-to-back titles for the Phoenix who won their first conference crown in program history last season.
The Basics
Score: No. 2 Wilson 89, No. 4 Keystone 68
Venue: Gannett Field House
Records: No. 2 Wilson 19-8, No. 4 Keystone 14-14
How It Happened
- It may have been cold in Chambersburg, but the Phoenix were quick to heat up Gannett as Rick Godwin Jr. (Sr., Largo, Md. / Largo / Southern Maryland) sent the home fans into a roar with a 3-pointer right after tip-off. Wilson ended up hitting 4-of-6 to start the game, but the Giants were hot from the start as well to equal the Phoenix at 10-all four minutes into the game. With the score tied at 12, the Phoenix made their first push of the game and went on 8-0 run with buckets from Antonio Bussey (Sr., Aiken, S.C. / Aiken / Claflin), Godwin, Darryl Garib (Sr., Dallas, Texas / Forest Park), and Ibraheem Bundu (So., Largo, Md. / CCBC Dundalk).
- The Giants were quick to respond with a 7-0 run of their own, but the Phoenix were just getting started and answered with the next seven. Wilson led by as many as 12 in the first half after Garib drove the lane on a dish from Jordan Miles (Sr., Waldorf, Md. / Westlake) to make the score 45-33. Keystone came back to make it an eight point game looking to keep the deficit in single digits at the half, but Godwin beat the buzzer with his third triple of the game to put Wilson up 48-37 at the break.
- Wilson remained in control in the second half holding a double-digit lead for the rest of the game. The Phoenix eventually pushed their lead out to 17 for the first time after Bussey took a feed from Miles and extended his arm over a Keystone defender for a thunderous dunk to make the score 59-42 with 15:34 to go.
- The Giants did make one final attempt to come back and eventually cut Wilson's lead to 10 after a Jack Anderson 3-pointer with 5:58 to go. The Phoenix wouldn't let them get any closer than that. A Garib layup, a pair of Bundu free throws, and a pair of buckets by Godwin sandwiched around a Giants layup had the home team back up 17 with 4:11 to play. In the end, Wilson was able to outscore Keystone 19-8 down the stretch to keep the game out of reach.
Inside The Numbers
- Garib capped off an incredible tournament with 29 points and 12 rebounds for his 11th double double of the season. His first half numbers would have been enough for most players as he scored 21 and pulled down six boards in the opening 20 alone. He added five assists to his line as well.
- As a result of his play today and his 21 point performance in the semifinals, Garib was named the CSAC Tournament MVP.
- Godwin also put up incredible numbers as he dropped a season-high 29 points on the Giants. He went 11-of-19 from the field with five treys. Additionally he pulled down four rebounds and dished out four assists.
- Bussey was busy as well for the Phoenix as he recorded his ninth double double of the season with 13 points and 12 boards. It's his fourth in as many games. He was 6-for-9 from the field, tallied three assists, and made two steals.
- Robertson was once again effective as the court general with 10 points and five assists. He also got into the mix off the glass with seven rebounds.
- Wilson outrebounded the Giants by a 46-31 count. Fourteen boards were on the offensive end which led to 19 second chance points for the Blue and Black.
- Overall Wilson shot 51.4% (36-for-70) from the field. It's the 11th game the Phoenix have shot 50% or better and are 10-1 in those games.
- Keystone was led by the trio of Javen Flowers-Smith, Daivel Jackson, and Jack Anderson, all of which scored 16 points. For Flowers-Smith, he was held eight points below his league-leading average of 24.0 points per game.
- The win extends Wilson's program record winning streak to 12 games.
- The 19 wins are the second-most in program history, one shy of the 2017-18 squad that went 20-8.
Up Next
With the automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament secure, the Phoenix will now wait until the selection show to find out who they play next. That will take place on Monday with a watch party in Jensen Dining Hall at 1 p.m.
