LAKELAND, Fla. - Southeastern's dominating performance in the first half propelled the Fire to a convincing 98-67 conference victory over Webber International University.
Wesley Johnson's superior defensive play on the blocks raised the energy inside The Furnace and set the tone for the Fire from the start. The senior native of Charleston, South Carolina, recorded a career-high seven blocks in the first half of the contest and was a dominant force all evening long.
The Fire rallied to outscore the Warriors 64-30 in the first half behind Ryan Atkins' 16 points. Atkins finished with 21 points in the game, shooting an impressive 54% from the floor and 80% from three point range.
CJ Reese contributed with another solid outing. The College Park, Georgia native recorded 15 points and a team-leading four assists. Complementing Reese, Ismael Celestin came off the bench to score 15 of the Fire's 37 bench points.
Harrison Hebert's perimeter shooting is always a nice addition to the Fire's attack. The native of Sarasota ended the game with 11 points, shooting 60% from beyond the arc.
The Fire's stellar defense held the Warriors to a 34% field goal percentage. Despite facing a forceful Fire defense, Osandai Vaughn and Johnathan Childs tallied 13 and 12 points for the Warriors, respectively.
Overall, the Fire responded in a positive manner with a convincing victory after a road loss. Southeastern will look to carry the momentum gained tonight as they travel to take on cross county rival Warner University on Saturday at 4 p.m.
