The College of Southern Maryland men’s basketball team beat the Thomas Nelson Community College Gators on November 22 by a score of 81-69.

Sophomore Warrick Godwin led the Hawks in scoring with 20 points. He shot 7-11 from the floor, including going 4-7 from behind the 3-point line. Godwin also grabbed three rebounds, made three assists, and had three steals.

Sophomore Lelan Eackles registered another double-double with 17 points and 10 rebounds. He added two assists, two steals, and a block.

“[Godwin and Eackles] are just tough to guard,” CSM head coach Alan Hoyt said. “Rick can shoot from anywhere, and you give him a second, he’s going to get it off. Lelan is inside, outside, but when he’s going downhill to the basket, there’s nothing you can do with him. He’s going to jump over the top of you. You can’t stay in front of him. As long as we can keep him moving, attacking, he’s going to be tough to guard.”

Freshman Armon Williams led CSM in assists with six while also providing 13 points. Freshman Devin Thomas was the second-leading rebounder for the Hawks with eight; he scored six points off two 3-pointers.

“Armon, offensively, really gets to where he wants to get to,” Hoyt said. “Devin Thomas looked fantastic tonight, playing defense, he’s all over the place, he rebounds, took a couple of charges.”

CSM’s largest lead of the game was 21 points when they were up 71-50 with less than nine minutes remaining in the game.

“We did a great job sharing the basketball, driving hard to the rim, finding the next guy, extra passes,” Hoyt said. “That’s what’s going to win basketball games on offense, sharing the basketball, finding the next guy.

“We had a lot of good moments today, and we’ll take that and keep moving forward.”


David M. Higgins II is an award-winning journalist passionate about uncovering the truth and telling compelling stories. Born in Baltimore and raised in Southern Maryland, he has lived in several East...