SALEM, W.Va. – A 50 point second half, earned the Salem University men's basketball team a 78-72 season-opener win over Urbana, Friday.
 
With the win, the Tigers improve to 1-0 and Urbana falls to 0-1.
 
The Tigers shot 90.5 percent from the charity stripe as a team making 19-21, while Urbana shot 72.2 percent knocking down 13-18 from the free-throw line.
 
Senior Malik Toppin led the way for the Tigers as he notched a double-double with 17 points and 13 rebounds, while sophomore Shawn Christian garnered a team-high 18 points to go along with two steals and two rebounds and had one assist.
 
Senior Chris Shields was the only other Tiger in double figures as he recorded 15 points and three rebounds.
 
Early in the contest, Christian hit back-to-back three's for the Tigers to take a 6-2 advantage over Urbana. Urbana controlled most of the first half and led the Tigers 33-28 at the half.
 
In the second half, Shields found a rhythm as he scored 13 of his 15 in the second half on 4-5 shooting and 4-4 from the free-throw line.
 
The game was tied 70-70 as Urbana's Malik Jacobs hit two free-throw to take a 72-70 lead over the Tigers.
 
Salem hit its next eight free-throws for an 8-0 run and a 78-72 victory.
 
Urbana was led by Matt Treacy as he notched a game-high 22 points to go along with seven rebounds, while Jordan Bradley scored 15 and Malik Jacobs scored 11.
 
The Tigers are back in action Sunday as they travel to Carlow for a matchup set to tip-off at 2:00 p.m.