SALEM, Va. – Freshman Keishawn Pulley, Jr. (Louisa, Va./St. Christopher's) scored nine points and pulled down a season-high 10 rebounds as the second-ranked and top-seeded Randolph-Macon men's basketball team defeated fourth-seeded Roanoke 62-50 on Saturday evening in the semifinals of the 2023 ODAC Tournament to extend its win streak to 24 games.

The Basics:

Score: Randolph-Macon 62, Roanoke 50

Venue: Salem Civic Center

Records: R-MC 26-1, RC 20-7

How it Happened:

• The Maroons had buckets sandwiched around a layup by junior Daniel Mbangue (Fairfax, Va./Fairfax) before jumpers by senior Miles Mallory (Beltsville, Md./St. Vincent Pallotti) and senior Josh Talbert (Virginia Beach, Va./Kellam) were followed by a layup from Pulley as the Yellow Jackets led 8-4 five minutes into the contest. RC scored seven straight to go up 11-8 before a three-pointer by junior Will Coble (Charlotte, N.C./Davidson Day) tied it and another trey by Coble gave RMC a 14-13 edge with 7:10 remaining in the first half. The Maroons had an 18-16 edge before Mbangue hit a jumper, freshman Jabril Robinson (Derwood, Md./South Kent Prep) buried a corner trey and Mallory completed a three-point play as RMC led 24-18 with 2:30 left. RC had the final two field goals of the half as the Yellow Jackets took a 24-22 lead at intermission. Mallory had seven points and Coble added six.
• The teams traded points early before Coble nailed another three-pointer as RMC took a 33-28 lead with 16:40 remaining. After a bucket by the Maroons, a jumper in the paint by Mbangue sparked an 8-0 spurt as the Yellow Jackets took a 41-30 advantage with 14:15 left. RC pulled within seven at 45-38 before a layup by Talbert capped a 7-0 run as RMC went up 52-38 with 7:15 remaining. The Maroons cut it to 10 before a three-point play by Mallory and a one-hander in the lane by Mbangue pushed the lead to 15 at 59-44 with three minutes left. RMC scored its final three points from the free throw line in a 62-50 victory.

By The Numbers:

• Roanoke entered the game averaging 77.4 points per game. The Maroons scored 117 points in their quarterfinal victory. RMC held Roanoke to 46, 50 and 50 points in three meeting this season.
• The Maroons were 0-13 from three-point range.
• The Yellow Jackets committed a season-low four turnovers.
• RMC has won 13 straight games against Roanoke and beaten them in the quarterfinals of the past four ODAC Tournaments.
• Mallory had three blocked shots to give him 265 for his career, a program and ODAC record. He has had at least one block in each game this season.
• RMC had two players score in double figures and six score at least eight points. Mallory led with 14 points, while Mbangue add 10. Coble and Pulley both scored nine, while Talbert and Robinson each had eight.
• Mallory has 1,423 career points to sit in 15th place on RMC's career scoring list.
• Talbert has 1,230 career points, passing Kevin Wood (1975-78) for 28th place on RMC's career scoring list.
• Talbert topped the Yellow Jackets with eight assists.
• Talbert has 356 career assists, passing Justin Short (2005-09) for ninth on the program's career assists list.
• Pulley had 10 rebounds and Mallory grabbed six.
• Mallory has 813 career rebounds, passing Justin Wansley (2002-05) for fifth place on RMC's career rebounding list.
• Talbert, Mallory and Mbangue all had two steals.
• Talbert has 188 career steals, the fourth-highest total in program history.

For the Record:

• The Yellow Jackets extended their win streak to 24 games.
• RMC is 18-3 all-time in semifinal contests in the ODAC Tournament. The Yellow Jackets are 9-8 in ODAC title games. RMC will play in the Championship Game for the fifth straight season.
• The Yellow Jackets are 7-1 against Roanoke in the ODAC Tournament.

Next Up:

R-MC will play in the Championship Game of the ODAC Tournament on Sunday, Feb. 26 at 3:30 p.m. in the Salem Civic Center against the winner of the Hampden-Sydney vs. Guilford semifinal contest.