Livingston Earns MVP Honors as Gophers Improve to 2-0

TOWSON, Md. — Goucher's Julian Livingston (Bowie, Md./Fairmont Heights) went off in the second half against Roanoke this afternoon, knocking down six 3-point field goals and accounting for 22 of his team's 48 points as the Gophers claimed the 2013 Goucher Classic title by downing the Maroons, 91-82.

For the game, Livingston was 8-for-13 from the field, including 7-for-10 on 3-point attempts, and a perfect 9-of-9 at the free-throw line for a total of 32 points. The 5-foot-5 sophomore forward also led all scorers in Goucher's 80-67 triumph over Gordon in the tournament's opening game Friday and was named the event's MVP.

Goucher, which snapped a nine-game losing streak against Roanoke by defeating the Maroons for the first time since 1998-99, placed two other players on the all-tournament team in Troy DeShields (Seaford, Del./Sussex Technical) and Brian Morton II (Ellicott City, Md./Mount St. Joseph). Both players contributed 17 points and seven rebounds to today's victory.

There were four ties and the lead changed hands five times in the first half, which ended with the Gophers (2-0) up by a point, 43-42.

A layup by Ethan Humphries on Roanoke's first possession of the second half put the Maroons (1-1) on top 44-43, but the Gophers responded by scoring 12 of the next 13 points, assuming a 55-45 lead on one of Livingston's seven3-pointers with 16:11 left to play.

Roanoke used a 9-0 run that featured four points by Cameron Smith and a 3-point bucket by John Fitchett to knock an 11-point deficit down to two with just under eight minutes remaining, but Livingston nailed another shot from behind the 3-point stripe to stop the bleeding. His sixth 3-point field goal provided Goucher with a 77-68 advantage with 5:12 left to play and his final made 3-pointer extended the lead to 84-72 with 3:29 showing on the clock.

The two teams were an identical 31-for-62 from the field. While the Gophers were 10-for-22 from 3-point range, the Maroons made only five of their 17 attempts from long distance.

Roanoke landed two players on the all-tournament team: Daniel Eacho, who turned in a 20-point, 17-rebound performance today, and Cameron Smith, who tallied 19 points against the Gophers. Gordon's lone representative on the all-tournament team was Jason Dempsey, who finished with a double-double of 12 points and 11 rebounds in Friday's game.

The Gophers, who are playing the first three games of a season at home for only the second time in their 24-year existence, will host Penn State-Altoona in the Decker Sports & Recreation Center at 7:30 p.m. Wednesday.