VIRGINIA BEACH, Va. - The NC Wesleyan College men's basketball team dropped their season opener on the road Friday afternoon falling 80-69 at Virginia Wesleyan in the Marlin tip-Off Tournament.
Wesleyan will now face rival Methodist in a non-conference consolation game at 1:00 PM on Saturday.
Junior point guard Brayden Dixon led the Bishops with 23 points along with 5 rebounds and 3 assists. Fellow junior wing Tim Pettiford then recorded a double-double of 20 points and 11 rebounds in the tough loss.
VWU got out to a big first half lead making 6 threes to the Bishops' one to grab a 45-29 lead at the break. Wesleyan would then outscore the Marlins 40-35 in the second half by getting to the foul line 19 times and making 15 free throws, but it was not enough to overcome their first half deficit in dropping the 11-point semifinal game.
Junior forward Isaiah Lewis also added 15 points with 8 rebounds while junior guard Devin Resper registered 7 points and team highs in assists with 4 and steals with two.