3rd-ranked VU Men's Basketball survives upset bid by Daley, 50-46, to go 26-2 on season

CHICAGO, Ill. - The NJCAA No. 3 Vincennes University Men's Basketball Team started slowly but gutted out a tough 50-46 victory over host Daley College in Chicago, IL, Saturday afternoon. The Trailblazers move to 26-2 on the season with the win.
Freshman Deshawn Delaney led VU with 16 points. He scored 12 of his points in the second half. Sophomore Bryant Smith had 13 and freshman Monte Burney scored 11 off the bench. The Bulldogs held VU leading scorer freshman Ronald Ross to eight points. Besides those four, freshman Lamine Dieng was the only other Trailblazer to score. He had two points early in the second half when VU scored the first six points after intermission and hinted at pulling away from its 23-22 halftime lead.
But Daley (12-16) wouldn't let the Trailblazers get loose from the grip. VU, which had missed its only two free throw attempts in the first half, hit 7-of-8 in the second half, while the Bulldogs were only 5-of-11 at the line. Hitting a few more free throws and making plays in the closing seconds were what saved the Trailblazers from the Daley upset bid.
VU was up 44-40 with 44 seconds to play when Chicago native Delaney scored on a feed from fellow Chicago product, sophomore Raymond Lester, but Daley's Jeremy Price hit a 3-pointer with 29.9 seconds to go. The Bulldogs called a timeout to discuss how to defend the Trailblazers on the ensuing inbounds play, but VU got loose and Delaney was fouled as he went for a dunk on the break-away. The Chicago Carver High School product hit both free throws in front of his family and friends to make it a two-possession game at 48-43.
A Daley turnover led to a Delaney dunk to up the margin to 50-43 but Willie Brown banked in a trey for the Bulldogs for the final score of 50-46.
VU inbounded the ball to Smith and he held on to it as the final seconds ran out on the game clock.
Now riding an 11-game winning streak since their last setback on Jan. 3 at Indian Hills, the Trailblazers return home Monday night to host Three Rivers, which handed VU one of its two losses, 75-66, on Nov. 26 in the Three Rivers Classic in Poplar Bluff, MO. Monday's tip-off will be at 7 p.m. The Trailblazers are looking to avenge Three Rivers' 75-66 win at the Three Rivers Parc Thanksgiving Classic in November in Poplar Bluff, MO.
VU will close out the regular season at home on Feb. 24 vs. Lindsey Wilson.