Wake Outscores UNCW In High Scoring Affair

WILMINGTON, N.C. – Wake Forest used its overwhelming inside game to offset UNC Wilmington’s high-octane offense in a 120-88 victory over the Seahawks Wednesday night at Lawrence Joel Coliseum.

In the first game between the two teams since 1991, the No. 21 Demon Deacons led by as many as 34 points to improve to 2-0 on the season. UNCW suffered its first loss of the new season after racking up 101 and 108 points in wins over Appalachian State and Troy.

Sophomore guard Jeff Teague of Wake led all scorers with 31 points on 10-for-17 shooting from the field and 9-for-12 at the free throw line. Sophomore forward James Johnson added 25 points, junior center Chas McFarland scored 19 and much-ballyhooed freshman Al-Farouq Aminu had 11 points and 12 rebounds.

Junior guard Johnny Wolf led four Seahawks in double figures with 24 points. Sophomore forward Dominique Lacy recorded his second career double-double with 20 points and 11 boards, while sophomore guard Darryl Felder and freshman guard Jerel Stephenson chipped in 11 apiece.

The Seahawks, playing their third game in six days, led early, 7-6, on a layup by Felder with 17:42 left in the first half before Wake catapulted to a 32-12 bulge behind a 26-5 run to take control. McFarland kicked off the decisive spurt with a tip-in at 17:26 and Johnson’s putback with 9:18 on the clock in the first period extended the margin to 32-12.

UNCW chipped away at the lead and pulled within 48-36 at 3:09 on a jumper along the left baseline by Lacy before the Demon Deacons closed out the half by scoring 12 of the last 17 points for a 61-44 advantage at the break.

Wake still led, 65-54, early in the second half, but Wolf drained a long 3-pointer from the left wing to narrow the lead to 69-60 with 15 minutes left to play.

Wake then rode the hot hand of Teague over the last 15 minutes and the second-year player from Indianapolis delivered, scoring 20 points in the final period as the Demon Deacons set a Joel Coliseum record with 120 points.

WFU, which shot 56.5 percent on the night, scored 41 points off 24 Seahawk turnovers and built a commanding 52-30 edge on the boards. It was Wake’s 11th victory in the series without a loss.

The Seahawks continue a five-game road trip Sunday with a 4:30 p.m. matchup at Mid-American Conference stalwart Kent State.

UNCW-WFU Notes: UNCW went 12-for-30 behind the 3-point line..Chad Tomko led the Seahawks with seven turnovers...Johnny Wolf missed his first free throw of the season...The Seahawks were beaten on the offensive glass, 19-6...UNCW had just two steals...Sophomore guard Darryl Felder made all three of his trey attempts...Eight players had at least one rebound in the game and eight different players had at least one 3-pointer. Wilmington native Ty Walker did not score in four minutes of play, but did pull down three rebounds.

Post-Game Quotes
UNCW Vs. Wake Forest
Nov. 20, 2008

UNCW Head Coach Benny Moss:

“They are really big, very athletic and really long. We took on a great opponent tonight. Our guys competed and did a good job in a couple areas. The difference in the game was the quality of our opponent and the fact that we were on the road.

“We weren’t consistent enough tonight. We have to become more consistent. When you take on a team like this that is athletic and big, it’s very difficult.

“Nobody gave us a chance tonight. It’s a road loss and not too many people are going to win in this building. They were just too much to handle tonight.

“The only thing that bothered me was that we gave up too many transition layups. As small as we are, we can’t allow layups in the transition.”

- Courtesy UNCWSports.com

-- Jesse Jones, CAPE FEAR SPORTS REPORT