Box Score Senior forward Danny Jones scored five points in the final 80 seconds to lead a 9-0 Yellow Jackets' run and send Randolph-Macon past Hood College 56-46 in the first day of the R-MC Coaches Classic on Thursday. Jones finished with 19 points and became the 38th player in Randolph-Macon Men's Basketball history to eclipse the 1,000 career point total.
Jackets' junior Calvin Croskey knocked down a three in the games' first possession which started a 7-2 opening run for R-MC.
The Blazers then rallied to score 14 of the next 17 points and took a 16-10 lead on a three by Herb Bowen with 9:05 to play.
A Jamal Bell layup with 2:45 left in the first extended the Hood lead to 26-16 but the Yellow Jackets scored the final six points of the half capped by an Eric Pugh layup at the buzzer to cut the Blazers advantage to 26-22 at halftime.
Croskey opened the second half with a three to pull R-MC within one but Hood responded with a trifecta from Cameron Cook.
Pugh knocked down a three on the Jackets next possession before a Brandon Braxton dunk gave Randolph-Macon their first lead since the 13:52 mark of the first half.
The teams traded baskets and the lead over the next 10 minutes until Braxton converted a layup with 7:11 left to give R-MC a 41-39 advantage.
With 5:38 to play, Danny Jones surpassed the 1,000 career point total when he sunk a layup and drew a foul to put the Jackets up four.
A Justin Stone foul shot cut the lead Randolph-Macon lead to 47-46 with 2:02 to play but the Yellow Jackets rallied for the final nine points of the game for the 56-46 victory.
Jones paced R-MC offensively with a game high 19 points. Braxton and Pugh joined in double figures with 13 points and four rebounds each. The Jackets shot 44.1% from the field including a 9-for-15 second half mark.
Brendan Straughn dropped in 14 for the Blazers who shot 40.5% from the field and edged Randolph-Macon 26-24 on the boards.
The Yellow Jackets will face Johns Hopkins Friday at 4:00 in day two of the R-MC Coaches Classic.
