ELON, N.C. - Jackson Atoyebi posted a double-double with 19 points and 11 rebounds and Scottie Rice tallied 19 points, eight assists and four blocked shots, leading six Elon scorers in double digits as the Phoenix dispatched Belmont Abbey 103-72 in exhibition men's basketball action Thursday night at Alumni Gym.
In the comeback for the "Big Jack Attack," Atoyebi canned seven of his eight shots from the field and sank five of seven tries from the free throw line. The performance marked his first appearance since recovering from a season-ending shoulder injury after four games last year.
Chris Chalko (14 points), Rasmi Gamble (14 points, nine rebounds, two blocked shots), Brett James (12 points) and Montell Watson (11 points, three steals) all registered double figures in the scoring column for the Phoenix while teammate LeVonn Jordan (nine points, nine rebounds, three steals) narrowly missed a double-double performance.
The Crusaders, members of the NCAA Division II Carolinas-Virginia Athletic Conference, were led by Anthony Hall. He knocked down seven of eight field goal attempts, including all five of his shots from three-point land, on his way to a game-high 20 points. Belmont-Abbey's Damien Humphrey (18 points, four steals) and Sidney Hoff (15 points) also scored in double digits.
Early in the contest, the Phoenix used a 24-4 run to transform a 7-7 tie into a commanding 31-11 advantage on a Chalko three-pointer with 11:28 to play in the opening stanza. A 20-6 surge by the Crusaders cut the deficit to 37-31 on back-to-back jumpers by Greg LaVann with 4:27 remaining in the first half.
Elon responded with a 20-3 run to fatten its lead to 57-34 on a lay-up by Gamble with 18:11 left in the contest. Belmont Abbey made one last run, going on a 16-5 spurt to pull within 62-50 on a dunk by Paul Petway with 14:18 to play. The rest of the game was all Elon as the Phoenix scored 41 of the game's next 60 points to stretch its cushion to 103-69 on a basket by Watson with 2:02 remaining.
Elon fired 61.9 percent from the floor, connecting on 39 of its 63 shots while holding Belmont Abbey to 35.0-percent marksmanship on 28-for-80 shooting from the field. The Phoenix made 19 of 34 attempts from the charity stripe for 55.9 percent while the Crusaders netted nine of 10 freebies for 90.0 percent. Elon won the battle of the boards 50-37.
The Phoenix will open the regular season when Southeastern (Fla.) visits Alumni Gym at 8 p.m. on Nov. 18. The Crusaders enter regular-season play with a visit to C.W. Post at 5 p.m. on Nov. 19.