BALTIMORE — Seemingly a century but less than two months, actually — the amount of time the Elon University men’s basketball team has to look back to channel the game plan it needs for Saturday.
The Phoenix will face top-seeded College of William & Mary at noon Saturday at Royal Farms Arena in a Colonial Athletic Association Tournament quarterfinal. Way back when on Jan. 8, the Phoenix toppled the Tribe 85-79 at Alumni Gym.
It ranks among Elon’s most impressive performances to date, a game where the Phoenix leaned on 25 points from freshman guard Elijah Bryant and ended on a 25-13 run.
The tides were much different in Williamsburg, Virginia, on Feb. 11 when the Tribe won 77-58.
It’s a quick turnaround for the Phoenix, which beat Towson University 74-69 in overtime on Friday night. Bryant, the CAA Rookie of the Year, poured in 21 points and four others registered double figures.
William & Mary earned the top seed thanks to tiebreakers that separated a four-way tie atop the league standings. The Tribe is led by CAA Player of the Year Marcus Thornton, who averages 19.4 points per game, and CAA Defensive Player of the Year Terry Tarpey, who leads the CAA in defensive rebounding (7.3), blocked shots (1.4) and steals (1.8).
“It’s a tough turnaround,” Elon coach Matt Matheny said. “William & Mary is very good. They’re the number one seed, and they’ve earned it. We’ll turn it around as quick as we can.”
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