courtesy GoDeacs.com
WINSTON-SALEM, N.C. – The Wake Forest men’s basketball team opened the Steve Forbes era with a resounding 111-51 victory over Delaware State Wednesday afternoon at Lawrence Joel Veterans memorial Coliseum.
The Demon Deacons 111 points are tied for 15th in program history and fourth most by Wake Forest in LJVM. Additionally, the 111 points are the most points scored in regulation since Wake Forest put up 120 points against UNC-Wilmington on Nov. 19, 2008.
The 60-point margin of victory is the second highest in the modern basketball era and the most since Wake Forest defeated Buffalo by 65 points (121-56) on Jan. 5, 1983.
In his collegiate debut, redshirt freshman forward Tariq Ingraham posted a game-high 19 points including going a perfect 7-of-7 from the field. He is the one of just three freshmen in Wake Forest history to post a perfect field goal percentage with at least seven attempts (Guy Morgan, 7-for-7 vs Rollins on Jan. 20, 1979; Jerry Schellenberg, 7-for-7 at Virginia Tech on Feb. 2, 1974).
He was one of five Demon Deacons to finish the game in double figures. All five players were making their Wake Forest debut.
Graduate transfer guard Jalen Johnson, poured in 16 points including going 4-of-6 from behind the arc. He also pulled down a game-high seven rebounds, both marked career-highs for the Durham, N.C. native.
The Deacs 14 three-point makes are the most since they knocked down 16 against LSU on Dec. 22, 2016. Additionally, Wake Forest finished the afternoon with 20 steals, the second most in program history only trailing the program record of 25 against Richmond on Dec. 10, 1977.
As a Division I coach, Steve Forbes teams are now a perfect 6-0 in home openers.
How It Happened
Daivien Williamson became the first player to score in the Steve Forbes era, laying it in at the 18:52 mark of the first half. It gave Wake Forest the first lead of the game at 2-0.
The game remained close throughout much of the first half. Neither team had more than a four-point lead through the first 10 minutes of play.
That changed with 6:39 left in the first half. At that point, the Demon Deacons started a 28-0 run over the next six minutes of play
During the 28-0 run, Jalen Johnson scored eight points while five additional players scored. It put Wake Forest up 57-25 with 52 seconds remaining in the first half.
The Deacs 59-30 halftime lead was Wake Forest’s largest first-half margin since Dec. 30, 2004 when the Demon Deacons held a 32-point advantage over North Carolina A&T.
Wake Forest continued to build on their lead in the second half, leading by as much as 64 points.
Wake Forest closed out the game on a 36-7 over the last 11:16 of the game.
12 of the 14 players who played for the Demon Deacons scored in the game with five players posting double figure points.
Additionally, 10 players had steals in the game including a career-high five from Isaiah Wilkins. Wake Forest recorded 20 steals in the game, the second most in program history.
Key Moment
Leading 29-25 in the first half, the Deacs proceeded to go on a 28-0 run , extending their lead to 57-25 with 0:52 left in the first half. During the run, six different Wake Forest players scored with Jalen Johnson netting eight of the 26 points.
Stat of the Game
The 60-point margin of victory is the second highest in the modern basketball era and the most since Wake Forest defeated Buffalo by 65 points (121-56) on Jan. 5, 1983.
Next highest margin of victory in Lawrence Joel Veterans Memorial Coliseum history was 47 against St. Mary’s on Dec. 1, 1980.
Straight From Forbes
“Before I start, I want to thank Delaware State for coming here. I want to thank President Hatch, John Currie, Lindsey Babcock, Ellie Shannon and the University leadership for getting us to this point and making it safe for us to play. Our kids were really excited to play today as you could probably tell. We were a little nervous early, and were not really sharp.
“Rhett Hobart and his marketing staff have done a phenomenal job with the Joel. I have seen some pictures of other places and I thought this was outstanding. We are very appreciative of all the fans that purchased the virtual tickets. It just shows the passion that we have for this program.
“We were on brand for most of the day which means we played to our identity. I was not really looking at the score, I was looking more at if we were playing hard and playing together, and sharing the ball. We had 21 assists on 36 baskets, so the ball was moving. We were gritty, grimey and tough on defense. We had our moments where, maybe we were not great, but for the game they shot 26 percent from the field. I was pleased with that. Rebounding is something we need to get better at. We need to get better at grabbing the ball with two hands. Execution was okay, but It was not always great, especially on defense. We had some moments where we messed up assignments, but you have to expect that. Making nine threes in the first half and 14 for the game, those guys did a great job.
“Tariq Ingraham had a great day coming off the bench, and we played everybody and that is the way we like to do it.”
Up Next
The Deacs will face the Longwood Lancers in the final game of the Mako Medical Wake Forest Classic Friday night at 7 p.m. at LJVM Coliseum. The game will air on ACC Network.
