UDC Firebirds Fall to NYACK Warriors 68-63

Washington, DC: November25, 2008—Turnovers proved to be the achilles heel for the University of the District of Columbia Firebirds tonight as they fell, 68-63, to the NYACK College Warriors in the Physical Activities Center. The Firebirds made 20 critical turnovers in the loss, as the Warriors capitalized by converting them into 24 points.

Valiant Jones provided the leadership for the Warriors, scoring 15 points, and Aundrae Williams and Stedford McLeod scored 12 apiece to help snatch the win away from the Firebirds in the closing minutes of the game. UDC led by ten points with 7:56 remaining in the game, but allowed NYACK to creep up on them, take the lead and hold on for the win.

Free throw shooting made the difference as the Warriors made 67 percent (18 of 27), to the Firebirds’ 58 percent (14 of 24) to take advantage of the UDC mis-steps. NYACK shot 37 percent ( 24 for 65) from the field and 14 percent (2 for 14) beyond the arc, while UDC made good on 42 percent ( 23 for 55) of their field goals.

Senior guard Kechan Myers(Philadelphia, PA) provided the leadership for the Firebirds, scoring 15 points, followed by junior forward David Burton (Philadelphia, PA) with a double-double of 14 points and 12 rebounds. Sophomore guard Tim Ellison (Alexandria, VA) added 11 points.

With this loss the Firebirds dropped to 1-4, while the Warriors improved to 2-4. UDC returns to the hard court on Sunday, November 30, at 1 p.m., for a contest against East Stroudsburg University at the Physical Activities Center.