Wednesday, December 23
Chicago, Ill.
8:00 P.M. CT
DePaul University
1-0,0-0Big East
91
vs
72
Western Illinois
2-5,0-0Summit League
1
2
F
Western Ill.
25
47
72
DePaul
44
47
91
Blue Demons Knock Off Leathernecks Wednesday Night
12/23/2020 10:56:00 PM | MEN'S BASKETBALL
Five players score in double figures for the Blue Demons
CHICAGO – DePaul kicked off its 2020-21 season on Wednesday evening with a 91-72 win over Western Illinois at Wintrust Arena.
Senior Charlie Moore led the way for the Blue Demons with a game-high 22 points while Javon Freeman-Liberty made an immediate impact in his first game in a DePaul uniform. The junior transfer from Valparaiso tallied 19 points and grabbed a team-high eight rebounds.
Nick Ongenda and Kobe Elvis finished with 12 points apiece while Ongenda recorded a career-high six blocked shots. Sophomore Oscar Lopez Jr. tallied a career-high 11 points on five-of-seven shooting in his first career start.
DePaul (1-0) got off to a quick start, opening the game on a 15-2 run behind a balanced scoring effort with five different Blue Demons scoring the first five field goals.
Western Illinois (2-5) narrowed the deficit to three at 22-19 with 5:46 remaining in the first half before the Blue Demons went on a 22-6 run of their own to close out the first stanza with a 44-25 advantage.
DePaul continued their hot shooting in the second half, going five-for-five from behind the arc in the first 10 minutes with Moore and junior transfer Courvoiser McCauley knocking down two apiece.
Six Blue Demons tallied six or more points in the final 20 minutes as the Blue Demons shot at a 59 percent clip in the second frame to put the game out of reach for the Leathernecks.
The Leathernecks were led by Tamell Pearson and Will Carius who finished with 15 points apiece.
DePaul returns to action on Sunday, Dec. 27 with a trip to Providence for its first BIG EAST contest of the 2020-21 season. Tip-off is set for 3:30 p.m. CT on FS1 with radio coverage carried on WIND 560 AM.
Senior Charlie Moore led the way for the Blue Demons with a game-high 22 points while Javon Freeman-Liberty made an immediate impact in his first game in a DePaul uniform. The junior transfer from Valparaiso tallied 19 points and grabbed a team-high eight rebounds.
Nick Ongenda and Kobe Elvis finished with 12 points apiece while Ongenda recorded a career-high six blocked shots. Sophomore Oscar Lopez Jr. tallied a career-high 11 points on five-of-seven shooting in his first career start.
DePaul (1-0) got off to a quick start, opening the game on a 15-2 run behind a balanced scoring effort with five different Blue Demons scoring the first five field goals.
Western Illinois (2-5) narrowed the deficit to three at 22-19 with 5:46 remaining in the first half before the Blue Demons went on a 22-6 run of their own to close out the first stanza with a 44-25 advantage.
DePaul continued their hot shooting in the second half, going five-for-five from behind the arc in the first 10 minutes with Moore and junior transfer Courvoiser McCauley knocking down two apiece.
Six Blue Demons tallied six or more points in the final 20 minutes as the Blue Demons shot at a 59 percent clip in the second frame to put the game out of reach for the Leathernecks.
The Leathernecks were led by Tamell Pearson and Will Carius who finished with 15 points apiece.
DePaul returns to action on Sunday, Dec. 27 with a trip to Providence for its first BIG EAST contest of the 2020-21 season. Tip-off is set for 3:30 p.m. CT on FS1 with radio coverage carried on WIND 560 AM.
Team Stats
WIU
DePaul
FG%
.380
.590
3FG%
.290
.500
FT%
.692
.692
RB
32
42
TO
17
20
STL
5
10
Game Leaders
Scoring
Pts
22
FGM
8
3FGM
4
FTM
2
Pts
19
FGM
8
3FGM
2
FTM
1
Pts
12
FGM
5
3FGM
2
FTM
0
Pts
12
FGM
5
3FGM
0
FTM
2
Players Mentioned
G
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