Christopher Newport got a season-high 28 points from senior Marcus Carter Sunday, as the 21st-ranked Captains registered a 97-67 triumph over Virginia Wesleyan at the Freeman Center. The Captains, who never trailed in the game, out-scored the Marlins in the second half, 50-29, to coast to the victory.
"That was just a remarkable effort," Head Coach John Krikorian said. "Coming off final exam week, I really didn't know what to expect...but we played at a really high level all day."
The Captains and Marlins have now played 86 times in a series that dates back to January of 1968. The 30-point verdict is the largest in the series in 30 years, since the Captains beat the Marlins at Ratcliffe Gymnasium, 92-62, on November 26, 1988. CNU now holds a 50-36 edge in the series, and the Captains have won four straight and five of the last six.
Christopher Newport opened an 11-point lead in the first half, 25-14, before the Marlins cut the advantage to one with a 12-2 run, 27-26. The Captains recovered and built the lead to nine at the intermission, 47-38. CNU put the game away early in the second half, out-scoring the Marlins, 33-13, to take an 80-51 lead and eventually went up by 32, 90-58, the biggest lead of the day.
Carter, who came into the game averaging almost 18 points per game, scored 14 in each half and also recorded six rebounds, three assists and a steal in just 23 minutes of playing time. He is now just seven points shy of Mike Cherry for tenth place on CNU's all-time scoring list, and has scored 1,472 career points in 103 games.
Junior Cutch Ellis and sophomore Jason Aigner each scored 16 points, and junior Dalon McHugh also reached double digits with 11. Ellis added eight rebounds and six assists, and Aigner knocked down three of his four three-pointers after halftime.
The Captains shot 50 percent for the game (35 of 70) and out-rebounded the Marlins, 50-31. CNU held VWU to just 38 percent shooting (23 of 60). Virginia Wesleyan was led by senior Keijon Honore's 20 points, all in the first half. The Marlins fell to 5-4 with the loss.
The Captains, who are now 8-1 to start the season, have a 12-day holiday break before returning to action on Friday, December 28th. CNU will host the Captains Shootout at the Freeman Center, and will play Mount St. Mary (NY) in the opening round. Tipoff time is set for 6:00 p.m.