Richmond, Va. — Virginia Union University opened CIAA play with a commanding 79-49 victory over Livingstone College on Saturday afternoon inside historic Barco-Stevens Hall. The Panthers improved to 5-1 overall and 1-0 in the CIAA.

VUU set the tone from the opening tip, holding the Blue Bears to just 21 first-half points and forcing 26 turnovers. The Panthers also owned the glass, finishing with a 46-19 rebounding advantage, including 22 offensive rebounds.

Bobby Gardner led the Panthers with 14 points and six rebounds, while Malachi Dark added 13 points and three boards. Noah Richardson-Keys filled the stat sheet with 10 points, four steals, and five rebounds. VUU also got strong bench production, outscoring Livingstone's reserves 30–28, and received scoring contributions from 13 different players.

"This was our first CIAA conference game, so we wanted to come out and defend at a high level," said VUU Head Men's Basketball Coach Jay Butler. "The guys were excited — for some of them, it was their first CIAA game. Coming off Thanksgiving, I told them we needed to get off to a good start and make sure we played a lot of people. We were able to rotate guys in and out, and I thought we did a good job defensively, especially in the first half. A couple of guys stepped up and made plays when we needed them to, but our defense is playing extremely well right now."

Elijah Scranton chipped in seven points and a team-high seven rebounds, while O'Maundre Harris dished out three assists to go with six points. VUU shot 48.4 percent from the field and scored 26 points off turnovers.

Livingstone was led by Omarion Bodrick, who scored 10 points. The Blue Bears fell to 3-3 overall and 0-1 in CIAA action.

VUU's best stretch came late in the second half, where the Panthers extended their lead to as many as 32 points — the largest margin of the game.

Next up, Virginia Union hits the road to face Shepherd University on Tuesday, December 3, in Shepherdstown, W.V.