Liberty (11-7, 0-3) was outlasted by Louisiana Tech (11-6, 1-1), 80-76, in overtime on Sunday afternoon in Ruston, Louisiana.
“I’m really proud of our guys,” said Liberty head coach Ritchie McKay. “I think our fight was tremendous. That we’re 0-3 in the league now, a lot of people will be disappointed, they will write us off. This is a group we are supporting. I love them. I love them to death. I love being at Liberty too because we get to remember that God is always doing something good. This is good for us. This is really good for us. To remember how hard it is to earn victory, it’s good for us. To remember that when people praise us that’s one thing and when they criticize us that’s another, we’ve got to keep operating out of our true identity.”
The Flames led by as many as 10 points and held the lead for over 34 minutes of game action on Sunday, but it wasn’t enough as the Bulldogs came from behind to pick up the victory. Liberty was held without a field goal over the final three minutes of regulation, missing a shot on the final possession in a tied game, sending the game to overtime.
Kyle Rode led the team with 20 points along with 6 rebounds. Zach Cleveland added 18 points, 6 rebounds, and 4 assists. Kaden Metheny had 14 points, 5 rebounds, and 2 assists, and Coiln Porter had 6 points and 7 assists. The Flames made 10 of 27 three-pointers for 37%.
The Flames are back in action for the first of consecutive home games at Liberty Arena on Thursday night. Liberty plays host to FIU (7-11, 2-1) at 7 p.m. on ESPN+.
OFFENSE STRUGGLES DOWN STRETCH
Liberty went the final 3:09 of regulation without making a field goal. The Flames only scored 1 point during that stretch as they were unable to hang on to a 5 point lead before the game went into overtime. With the game tied at 69, Liberty had possession and held for the final shot. Zach Cleveland drove into the paint but was unable to get off a clean look, as his fade away jump shot fell away.
“I trust Zach,” said McKay of the final play of regulation. “We put the ball in his hand. He is usually really good for us. He didn’t give what we wanted, but I’m ok with it because I trust him with it.”
The offense really struggled down the stretch, particularly in the half court. There was a late shot clock violation and not many good shot opportunities for the team. Certainly some credit must go to Louisiana Tech and their defense for the job they did, as well.
SIZE ONCE AGAIN TOO MUCH
Liberty was outscored, 40-28, in the paint and 21-14 at the free throw line. The Bulldogs also held an 11-2 edge in blocked shots, as their length proved to be too much for the Flames to overcome. Daniel Batcho certainly affected numerous shots with his length in the paint.
“We couldn’t overcome the size disadvantage,” McKay said. “They had (40) points in the paint, 21 made free throws, that’s a lot to overcome.”
FLAMES 0-3 IN CONFERENCE PLAY
Liberty has now fallen to 0-3 in CUSA play, certainly a tough first week in its new conference home. It marks the first time the team has lost three straight, whether in conference games or outside of conference play, since January 2018 when the team lost five straight against Big South foes.
The Flames have played three of the top teams in Conference USA with two of them coming on the road. Still, that doesn’t change the 0-3 start. There’s certainly a long way to go during the season, and, ultimately, only the conference tournament in March matters, but there is time for the team to string together some wins.
“This is a good league,” McKay stated. “It’s well-coached, well-recruited, really good players in it. There’s a lot of length and athleticism. We have to combat that with areas where we have advantages. I love being a part of it. I love the hard. I’m going to wait until the end of the season before I give you a full evaluation on how I think we’ve performed, but I do think we’re getting better.”
