Liberty rallies back to dispatch Louisiana Tech on final shot

 

Liberty's Kaden Metheny (3) hit the game-winner in Saturday night's contest against Louisiana Tech. (Photo:  Liberty Athletics)

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LYNCHBURG, Va. – Liberty led for four minutes and 28 seconds Saturday night against Louisiana Tech. The Flames’ final lead – for 2.1 seconds – was the one that mattered most.

The Flames hit just one three-pointer in 10 tries in the first half before draining 8-of-13 in the second stanza Saturday. Liberty had the ball with eight seconds remaining in a game tied at 62, before forward Zach Cleveland took off toward the basket to try a game-winner, only to find his path blocked. He spun, found guard Kaden Metheny behind the three-point line near the Flames’ bench, and tossed him a pass. Metheny sank a three-point try and gave Liberty a 65-62 victory before an announced crowd of 3,696 at Liberty Arena.

KADEN METHENY. ONIONS. pic.twitter.com/5o7tEKn8gc

— Brian (@sportsmatters) February 11, 2024

“We wanted to get the ball in Zach’s hands,” Metheny said. “He’s a great playmaker and a great attacker getting to the rim. He made a great read. The guy sunk in on me, he dished it out to me, and I made the shot.”

“He was really close to me,” Liberty coach Ritchie McKay added of Metheny’s game-winner. “When it left his hand, I thought, ‘Man, he’s really far out there.’ I heard the reaction. I didn’t see it go through the net. We’ve seen Kaden make an awful lot of those baskets in practice.”

Louisiana Tech (16-9, 6-3 CUSA) led the entire first half, save for one period where the game was even. The Bulldogs got contributions from Sean Newman, Daniel Batcho, Isaiah Crawford, and Tahlik Chavez to build an advantage, with a Chavez triple at the 5:26 mark extending the advantage to two possessions. The trio continued contributing the Bulldogs’ offense that kept the lead between five and eight points for the remainder of the first half.

The Flames trailed by seven at the interval, despite shooting just 8-for-27 (29.6 percent) from the floor. The Flames also committed 10 turnovers in the period.

“What makes Louisiana Tech so good is that they’re terrific defensively,” McKay said. “You can look at their numbers. They have a presence in the paint with Crawford and Batcho that is high-majorish. It’s going to be a grind because they’re hard to score against. When Chavez is cooking – and Newman played well as he always seems to play against us – they’re a tough out.”

Crawford scored 12 of the Bulldogs’ first 20 points of the second half, leading the visiting side to a nine-point advantage. Louisiana Tech led 48-39 at the 11:40 mark before Liberty made an adjustment on the star Bulldog forward.

“I thought (forward) Shiloh (Robinson) gave us a quick boost to get Zach off of him,” McKay said. “Zach empties his tank and is such a focal point offensively for us. It’s hard to be who he is on the offensive end and guard arguably their best player. I think we just outlasted him.”

Liberty (16-9, 5-5) started to make its run in correlation with its slowing Crawford. The Flames began to methodically fight their way back into the contest, unfurling an 18-4 run over a roughly seven-minute period to claw back and finally take the lead on a Metheny triple with 5:03 to play. Crawford then hit a triple with 4:22 to play that drew the Bulldogs back within a bucket.

Following a Kyle Rode three that swelled the Liberty lead back to five, Batcho and Newman keyed a five-point mini-run that drew the game back square with 48 seconds remaining. That set the stage for a thrilling final minute.

Liberty guard Brody Peebles put the Flames ahead by a pair on a clutch bucket with 23 seconds remaining. Newman responded with a layup on the other end that again squared the tilt at 62. Liberty then burned its final timeout to set up the eventual game-winning shot.

The win felt especially sweet for the Flames, given their having registered conference losses by two, four, and six points, respectively.

“We’ve been saying this whole conference season that we believe in this team, and sometimes to outsiders, it’s hard to see that when it’s a loss,” Rode said. “I’m just so proud of our group.”

“We turned the ball over a little too much in the first half. It was kind of uncharacteristic, but it felt like we did a good job of staying in there.”

Metheny’s final shot allowed him to pace Liberty and all scorers with 21 points. Metheny hit 8-of-15 tries from the field and 3-of-7 from three. Rode added 18 on 7-of-12 shooting, while Peebles added 16. The junior from Hartselle, Ala., has hit 13-of-23 shots and scored 37 points in two starts filling in for the injured Joseph Venzant.

“I think it’s just being ready. I think it’s putting in the work on a daily basis so when my name is called, I’m ready,’ Peebles said. “I think the guys trust me and the coaches have trust in me. When you get those moments, whenever they are, you just try to stay ready when you’re needed more and whatever your role might be that night.”

Liberty shot 47.2 percent (25-for-53) with a 9-for-23 (39.1 percent) performance from deep. That performance was buoyed by a 17-for-26 (65.4 percent) second half.

Louisiana Tech placed four scorers in double figures. Crawford led the Bulldogs with 19, putting home 9-of-12 shots and recording six steals. Batcho contributed 18 and hauled in nine boards, while Chavez recorded 11 on a 4-for-11 performance with 3-for-7 coming from deep. Newman added 10, hitting 4-of-6.

The Bulldogs shot 51.9 percent (27-for-52) on the night, managing just 30.8 percent (4-for-13) from distance. Louisiana Tech got to the line just seven times on the night, hitting four (57.1 percent).

Louisiana Tech returns to CUSA play Thursday night, welcoming Jacksonville State to the Thomas Assembly Center in Ruston, La., for a 7:00 (Eastern) tip. The game will be streamed over ESPN+. Liberty will next see action next Saturday night in the Bernard G. Johnson Coliseum in Huntsville, Texas, against Sam Houston. That game will tip at 7:30 (Eastern), with streaming coverage also over ESPN+.

LIBERTY 65, LOUISIANA TECH 62

LOUISIANA TECH (16-9, 6-3 CUSA)

Mangum 0-3 0-0 0, Batcho 8-14 2-3 18, I. Crawford 9-12 0-2 19, Chavez 4-11 0-0 11, Newman 4-6 2-2 10, J. Crawford 1-1 0-0 2, Henderson 1-2 0-0 2, Miller 0-1 0-0 0, Fee 0-2 0-0 0. Totals 27-52 4-7 62.

LIBERTY (15-9, 5-5)

Rode 7-12 0-0 18, Cleveland 3-9 1-2 7, Porter 1-4 0-0 2, Peebles 6-11 2-2 16, Metheny 9-15 2-4 21, Robinson 0-2 0-0 0, Yates 0-0 0-0 0, McKay 0-0 0-0 0, Southerland 0-0 1-2 1, Venzant 0-0 0-0 0. Totals 25-53 6-10 65.

Halftime:  Louisiana Tech 29-22. 3-Point goals:  Liberty 9-23 (Rode 4-8, Cleveland 0-1, Porter 0-1, Peebles 2-6, Metheny 3-7), Louisiana Tech 4-13 (Mangum 0-2, Crawford 1-1, Chavez 3-7, Newman 0-1, Henderson 0-1, Ree 0-1). Fouled out:  NA  Rebounds:  Louisiana Tech 31 (Batcho 9), Liberty 25 (Cleveland 6). Total fouls:  Louisiana Tech 14, Liberty 12. Technicals:  Newman (LT).

Points off turnovers:  Liberty 16, Louisiana Tech 10.  Points in the paint:  Louisiana Tech 38, Liberty 32.  Second-chance points:  Louisiana Tech 9, Liberty 4.  Fast-break points:  Louisiana Tech 9, Liberty 4.  Bench points:  Louisiana Tech 4, Liberty 1.