Liberty’s season comes to an end with loss at Nevada

Liberty saw its season come to an end on Saturday night in the second round of the NIT at Nevada, 73-63. The Flames finish the year with a 26-7 overall record, falling to the 2-seed Wolf Pack who improve to 24-12.

“We had a lot of trouble with their versatility,” Liberty head coach Ritchie McKay said. “Their ability to get to the free throw line was obviously one of the difference makers, but I’m proud of our group. Anyone that has a comment about what our group didn’t accomplish, those are the uneducated. Our group battles. They never use excuses. We don’t ever talk about what we don’t have, or this, that, and the other. Privileged to play in the postseason. Obviously, everyone wants to make the NCAA Tournament, but playing in the NIT is a privilege and we don’t take that lightly.”

Liberty led 58-54 with 7:13 left in the game, but Nevada closed on a 19-5 run. The Flames struggled to score during that stretch, making just 2 of 13 field goal attempts. Meanwhile, Nevada overcame a nearly six minute drought without a field goal as they took advantage of getting to the free throw line, making all 14 of their free throw attempts to close out the game.

Josh Smith had a career night in Liberty’s first round win at George Mason, scoring 23 points and hauling in 9 rebounds. He was once again key for the Flames against Nevada, but he fouled out with 3:58 remaining with Liberty leading 61-59. The Wolf Pack closed the game on a 15-2 run after he fouled out.

“They lived at the free throw line down the stretch,” said McKay. “Josh Smith got the 5th foul down the stretch…it’s a part of the game. It was a hard game to officiate. I think it was a lot of back and forth and there was a lot of quality play. They have a size advantage and when we didn’t have Josh in there, they maximized that.”

Nevada went on a 19-5 run in the first half to take a nine point lead. They led for most of the first half behind that run and took a 35-31 lead into the locker room. The Flames were just 1 of 11 from behind the arc in the opening half, not connecting for their first triple until the final minute.

Liberty came storming back after the intermission, taking the lead on a banked in Kaden Metheny triple, the team’s first lead since early in the first half when it was 11-9. The Flames went on an extended 13-2 run to take the lead heading down the stretch.

It was Liberty’s fifth all-time meeting against a Mountain West foe and first since 2007. The Flames drop to 0-5 against the conference all-time as head coach Steve Alford got the win against McKay and the Flames. Maybe a little bit of revenge for Alford after Liberty defeated then-head coach Steve Alford and UCLA, 73-58, at Pauley Pavilion on Dec. 29, 2018. Just a couple days later, UCLA fired Alford. He would land at Nevada the following off-season.

“I never like playing really close friends, and Steve is that and more,” said McKay. “An unbelievable individual. He’s got a great sense of humility, especially for a guy as accomplished as him. If you’re going to go down in defeat, you certainly want to do it with a brother. A lot of respect for him and his program. They are a really good team.”

Brett Decker led the way for the Flames with 20 points on 6 of 13 shooting and 2 of 5 from three. He made all six of his free throws. Zach Cleveland had 16 points on 6 of 12 shooting and 4 of 7 from the charity stripe. He also had 7 rebounds and 6 assists. JJ Harper rounded out the double figures scorers for Liberty, finishing with 14 points on 6 of 11 shooting.

Josh Smith scored 7 points and had 4 rebounds, starting his second straight game. Colin Porter had 3 points and was just 1 of 8 from the field and 1 of 5 from three. Kaden Metheny, playing despite having an injured calf, had 3 points on 1 of 5 from three.

Liberty finished the game shooting 40.4% from the field and just 5 of 22 (22.7%) from three. The Flames made 75% of their free throws (12/16). The Wolf Pack shot 46.3% from the field and were 4 of 17 from three (23.5% while making 19 of 20 free throws (95%).

Eight seniors saw their careers come to an end for the Flames, as Zach Cleveland, Colin Porter, Kaden Metheny, Josh Smith, JJ Harper, and Zander Yates all played in their final game at Liberty. Additionally, Isaiah Ihnen, who missed the majority of the season due to a knee injury has also seen his Liberty career finish.

“I hate last games because that question invokes the reality that I won’t get to coach them again,” McKay said of his senior group. “(Zach) and Colin and Kaden, in an era in which it’s about me or about mine, they stayed for less money. They trusted us. They chose us. Our associate head coach Derek Johnston said in locker room, ‘Thank you guys for choosing us.’ Don’t be sad that it’s over, be happy that it occurred. I will try and live in that posture.”