NEWPORT NEWS, Va. - Randolph-Macon men's basketball fought its way to a gritty road victory at #9 Christopher Newport 71-65, behind an impressive second half performance by
Jabril Robinson (Rockville, Md./South Kent Prep).
The Basics:
Score: #2 Randolph-Macon 71, #9 Christopher Newport 65
Venue: Newport News, Va. // Freeman Center // Christopher Newport University
Records: Randolph-Macon (3-0, 0-0 ODAC), Christopher Newport (1-1, 0-0 C2C)
How it Happened:
- The start of the game was dead even, leading both teams into the first media timeout, tied at 7-7. Keishawn Pulley Jr. (Richmond, Va./St. Christopher's School) led the Yellow Jackets with an early three-pointer. Ty Showalter (Charlotte, N.C./Butler) gave the Lemon and Black their first lead of the game at 12-11, using a three ball with 14:02 left in the first half. Both teams swapped the lead throughout the first nine minutes of the game. Pulley Jr. missed a free throw and Malcolm Hodges (Richmond, Va./Monacan) converted a second chance tough lay-up to give Randolph-Macon its biggest lead at 15-12. Christopher Newport used free throws to take the lead back at 19-17 with just under ten minutes until halftime.
- Brady Lam (Ruckersville, Va./William Monroe) nailed a three-pointer to give the lead back to the Yellow Jackets at 20-19 with 8:37 on the clock. The flow of the game was dictated with 21 fouls in the first 13 minutes of game action. The Captains took advantage and knocked down 12 free throws and held a 23-20 lead with just over seven minutes until halftime. Pulley Jr. was subbed back into the game out of the timeout and buried a three-pointer plus the foul shot to pull Randolph-Macon back into the lead at 24-23.
- Christopher Newport had back-to-back buckets by Toa Hollenbeck and Jason Ofcarcik to give the Captains a 27-24 lead. Liam Joyce (Allentown, Pa./Allentown Central Catholic) brought the Lemon and Black within a point with a put back lay-up. Randolph-Macon scored eight of the next 14 points and Theartis Battle (Baltimore, Md./John Carroll) made a driving lay-up to push the Yellow Jackets ahead 34-33. Hollenbeck made a jump shot with seconds left, only giving the Lemon and Black a 36-35 lead at halftime.
- The second half started with back-to-back threes by Showalter and Pulley Jr., giving the Yellow Jackets their biggest lead at 44-39 with 17:22 left in the second half. Robinson and Amr Areikat (Ramallah, Palestine./Langley) both made lay-ups to push Randolph-Macon back to a five point lead at 50-45 halfway through the second half. Robinson scored four straight points with the Yellow Jackets hanging on to a one possession lead, pushing the lead to 57-50 with 8:27 remaining in regulation.
- The scoring run continued for the Lemon and Black to 7-2, punctuated with a Lam three ball to give Randolph-Macon a 60-52 lead. Christopher Newport came out of the second media timeout with a burst, scoring four straight points to cut the deficit in half and the Yellow Jackets leading 60-56 with 6:26 left in regulation. Robinson and Joyce got the points right back and the lead grew back to eight for Randolph-Macon. Both teams traded baskets for almost five minutes and with 1:46 left in regulation, the lead still sits with the Lemon and Black at 69-61. The defense stepped up on two straight possessions for the Yellow Jackets and with :51.2 seconds left the lead is 71-62. The Captains did make a late three-pointer, but Randolph-Macon ran out the clock and took home the victory 71-65.
Inside the Numbers:
- Randolph-Macon shot 49.2 percent from the floor, as Christopher Newport knocked down 43.8 percent of its shots.
- The Yellow Jackets outrebounded the Captains 34-to-31 in the entire game. The Lemon and Black pulled down 11 offensive rebounds, compared to the 10 that Christopher Newport grabbed.
- Pulley Jr. led the team with 15 points, shooting 5-of-8 from the floor. The senior knocked down a trio of three-pointers, had three steals and grabbed two rebounds.
- Robinson ended the night with 10 points, six rebounds and a steal. The senior scored all ten points in the second half.
- Joyce scored eight points, pulled down seven rebounds, assisted five shots, blocked three shots and had two steals for the Yellow Jackets.
- Lam, Showalter and Theo Antinori (Asheville, N.C./Rabun Gap) combined for 26 points off the bench.
For the Record:
- This is the first win for Randolph-Macon on the road against Christopher-Newport since the 2010-11 season.
Up Next
Randolph-Macon will have its home opener against (RV) Yeshiva on Saturday, November 15 at 8:15 p.m.
