Jacksonville, Fla. - Two-time Volusia County Player of the Year and current Hatter freshman Corey Walden (Daytona Beach, Fla.) led a second-half surge that gave Stetson (3-4, 1-1) a 74-64 victory Saturday night against the University of North Florida (4-4, 1-1). Walden scored all 15 of his career-high points during crunch time in the second half. He finished 5-for-8 from the field, 2-of-4 from beyond the arc and 3-for-5 from the line to go along with three assists and two steals. Stetson split its Jacksonville weekend and is now 1-1 in Atlantic Sun Conference play.
Sophomore Ridge Graham (Stuart, Fla.) equaled Walden's 15 points and also pulled down 10 rebounds for his 3rd double-double of the season. Stetson redshirt freshman Aaron Graham (Ft. Lauderdale, Fla.) led all scorers with 20 points on the night. Graham hit 5-of-9 from the field including an impressive 5-for-6 from downtown. He tallied career-highs in points, field goals, and 3-pointers.
"This is our third straight game where we've played well so hopefully we're gaining some consistency", said Stetson head coach Derek Waugh. "The guys really stepped up and made some big-time plays. It seems like we're getting better every day, not only in our games but in our practices. I'm really proud of them, this was a great win to get."
In a game that was tied 10 times and had seven lead changes Stetson went ahead to stay when Luis Jacobo (Sanford, Fla.) made a layup with 5:48 remaining to make the score 51-49. A pair of Aaron Graham free throws at 00:16 gave the Hatters its largest lead of the game at 12 points.
Stetson shot 54.3% for the game compared to 44.0% for the Ospreys. The Hatters were 4-of-9 from 3-point territory in each half to finish at 44.4%, and they shot 69.6% from the line including a 13-for-17 effort in the second half.
Ridge Graham, who leads the A-Sun in minutes played, was on the floor for 38 of the 40 minutes. In addition to his double-double, he equaled his career-high of five steals.
Next up the Hatters will travel to Coral Gables on Sunday, December 12 to take on Miami at 4:00 p.m. Stetson fans can hear the game on Hatter Vision with 17-year veterans Murray Miller and Harry Arnold calling the action. Also be sure to follow the Hatters on Twitter at @StetsonSID (twitter.com/stetsonsid), "like" Stetson Athletics on Facebook and check out the official YouTube channel at youtube.com/stetsonhatters.
