Cockrill III Scores 35 in Homecoming Victory
Fisk starts fast, then holds on in their home opener.
NASHVILLE (November 9, 2024)—Doyel Cockrill III scored his career-high 35 points, 19 of which came in the second half. Michael Ashley added 16 points and grabbed 19 rebounds as the Fisk University Bulldogs (2-2) defeated the Midway University Eagles (1-1) 82-71 in front of a sold-out Homecoming crowd in Nashville.
"I am proud of how our guys played, especially on the defensive end," said Fisk head coach Jeremiah Crutcher. "They scored 101 in their first game. To hold them to 30 points less than that showed how the team played together."
The Bulldogs started fast. After Midway scored the game's first points, Fisk went up 7-4 on a Cockrill III three-point basket and never looked back. A 15-1 run by Fisk, culminated by another Cockrill III three, made the score 22-7. Midway chipped away at the lead to make it 37-32 at the half.
"The new lights in the gym made shooting the ball easy," said Cockrill III. "The crowd had us going early. I loved the atmosphere here. Having our cheerleaders, alumni, and the city here was special."
The beginning of the second half was all Fisk. Two Mark Cooper free throws stretched the lead to ten with 13:40 to go. Midway got hot and cut the lead to two points at the 5:16 mark. A 6-0 mini-run by Fisk stretched the lead to eight points with 3:58 left. Two Cockrill III free throws with 1:20 left put the game out of reach.
"This was bittersweet for me, being my final Homecoming game," said Ashley. "We fed off the crowd, and this was fun. I almost surpassed my career high (21) in rebounds. It would have been nice to do that, but I am happy with the win."
Fisk will now travel to Alabama for three games. On Wednesday, they will play NCAA DI Alabama A&M before jumping into HBCU Athletic Conference play against Oakwood (Thursday) and Stillman (Saturday).