NORFOLK, Va. – Old Dominion men’s basketball improved to 2-0 on Wednesday night as the Monarchs defeated Regent University, 91-47.
It marked ODU’s largest win since the Monarchs defeated UTEP, 82-33 on Feb. 17, 2018.
“I’m thankful that we won and appreciate the opportunity to play again in terms of being able to take away some things from this to learn from. Just like Monday, there will be plenty of things that we can get better at and we will,” ODU head coach Mike Jones said following the win.
Before the opening tip, the Monarchs also presented Regent's Chase Mullen with a jersey in honor of his father, the late Mario Mullen who played at ODU from 1992-96 and was a part of the 1995 CAA Championship team that secured a triple-overtime victory over third-seeded Villanova in the NCAA tournament.
"Odell Hodge and I and Mario Mullen, we were very close," Jones said of his former teammate. "Mario was one of my best friends on the team. I was heartbroken at his passing, and I haven't been able to communicate with his family much since his funeral. But to be able to see Chase over there and just the brief moment we got at center court, that's the least that we can do."
Scottie Hubbard set career highs with 16 points on 4-for-6 shooting from beyond the arc. The Washington, D.C. native also made all four of his free throw attempts and grabbed four rebounds in 14 minutes off the bench.
Adante’ Holiman shot 5-for-10 from the floor, including 2-for-6 from distance, to finish with 12 points, and CJ Lyons was the other Monarch in double figures, knocking down 2-of-5 three-point attempts and netting 11 points. Zamoku Weluche-Ume and Kylan Howze contributed nine points each, and Ben Nacey turned in an eight-point effort.
ODU had 13 different players find the scoring column as the team combined to shoot 47.2% (34-for-72) from the field, 28.1% (9-for-32) from distance, and 73.7% (14-for-19) at the line. The Monarchs also forced 23 turnovers and had 11 players record a steal, with Weluche-Ume, Nacey, and Khoi Thurmon grabbing two each.
Regent’s Christian Brown opened the scoring with a jumper in the paint 13 seconds into the game, and Bubu Benjamin answered with a driving layup from the left side to even the score, 2-2 at the 18:33 mark. Chauncey Gilliam put the Royals back in front, 4-2 with a pair of free throws with 17:59 on the clock, but that was the last time the visitors would lead.
Howze and Weluche-Ume sparked a quick 8-0 run between the two of them as ODU jumped ahead, 10-4. Following another basket by Brown, a Howze layup opened an 18-0 run over six minutes as the Monarchs pulled away, 28-6. Regent’s Jalen Gribbins snapped the visitor’s scoring drought with a triple at the 8:52 mark. Hubbard, Holiman, and CJ Lyons each hit two three-pointers to put the home team up, 55-17 with 44 seconds left in the opening stanza. Regent’s Ichi Layne rounded out the first-half scoring with a triple of his own as ODU took a 55-19 lead into the locker room.
Notably, the Monarchs didn’t commit any turnovers in the first 20 minutes and had 11 assists at the break. The second half wasn’t as clean, with ODU tallying 11 turnovers with just five assists.
“I told [the team] we can’t go back and redo it, but we have to be better than that. We have to be the best team we can be, and at times we were, and at times we weren’t,” added Jones.
In the second half, a Weluche-Ume layup, a Zach Wiggins triple, and a Holiman jumper widened the gap by 40, 63-23 with 14:33 to go. Lucio Martini made his Monarch debut, scoring a layup and converting a free throw to complete an and-one opportunity. Hubbard then went 2-for-2 at the line and made his fourth and final three to extend the lead, 76-33 with 7:14 on the clock.
ODU put together another 6-0 run, highlighted by a Lyons fast-break dunk, for the team’s largest lead of the night, 82-36 with a little over five minutes remaining. The Royals put together a late 8-2 push, but a Rieco Hellams layup and traditional three-point play by Nacey rounded out the scoring.
Old Dominion had more points off turnovers (32-13), in the paint (50-14), more second-chance points (10-9), fast break points (21-9), and points off the bench (56-28).
The game marked the first ever meeting between the two programs and counted as an exhibition for the Division III Royals.
Up Next
The Monarchs have their first road test of the season this Saturday as the team heads up to Lewisburg, Pennsylvania to play Bucknell. Tipoff at Sojka Pavilion is scheduled for 5 p.m.