Voorhees Men Pull Away Early, Handle Wilberforce 80–66 at Home

DENMARK, S.C. — Voorhees University used a dominant first-half surge and balanced scoring to build a 25-point cushion and closed out an 80–66 win over Wilberforce (Ohio) on Saturday night.

The Tigers set the tone on both ends in the opening 20 minutes, racing to a 42–27 halftime lead behind efficient shooting and crisp ball movement. Voorhees then answered every Wilberforce push after the break, with a late jumper from Tim Smith that made it 80–64 in the final 90 seconds effectively sealing the victory.

Voorhees’ offense clicked from the opening tip. Jaheim Hall started the scoring with a layup, and the Tigers quickly stretched the margin to 10–2 when Xavier Finney buried a 3-pointer off a steal by Gabriel Wright. That early burst set the tone for a first half in which Voorhees repeatedly turned stops into transition opportunities, eventually pushing the lead to 36–14 on a Wright layup in the paint with just over five minutes remaining in the period.

Wilberforce trimmed the deficit slightly before the break, but Voorhees still carried a 15-point cushion into halftime and wasted little time reasserting control in the second half. Finney knocked down another 3-pointer early to make it 47–27, and a dunk by Rydarius Hill kept the advantage firmly in double figures at 54–36 near the midway point of the half. Wright later completed a three-point play around the eight-minute mark as the Tigers stretched their largest lead to 71–46, part of a game-high 25-point margin.

Voorhees’ efficiency across the board separated the teams. The Tigers shot 53.6% from the field (30 of 56), including 38.5% from 3-point range (5 of 13), and converted 15 of 23 free throws (65.2%). They also shared the ball effectively with 18 assists and held a 28–22 edge on the glass, while getting 33 points from the bench. Wilberforce finished at a solid 49.0% from the floor (25 of 51) but went just 3 of 10 from beyond the arc and 13 of 24 at the line (54.2%), limiting its ability to close the gap.

Smith and Gary Davis Jr. led the Tigers with 12 points apiece. Davis added three assists and hit his only 3-point attempt, while Smith was highly efficient at 4 of 6 from the field and 4 of 4 at the stripe. Hill provided an interior spark with 11 points on 5 of 7 shooting and five rebounds in 17 minutes. Wright and Finney also contributed in key stretches, helping fuel the Tigers’ decisive first-half and early second-half runs.

Wilberforce was paced by Eduardo Diaz, who scored a game-high 16 points on 6-of-8 shooting and 2 of 3 from 3-point range. Daiquan Coach added 10 points and two steals for the visitors, who outscored Voorhees 39–38 after halftime but could not overcome the early deficit.

The victory continues a pattern of strong offensive outings for Voorhees, with the Tigers again passing the 80-point mark behind balanced scoring and efficient shooting. With the home win secured, Voorhees heads into the heart of its schedule with momentum and a blueprint built on early defensive pressure, ball movement and depth production.