SALEM, VA--The Roanoke College men's basketball team defeated a nationally-ranked opponent for the first time since January 25, 2004 with a 72-63 win over #11 Hampden-Sydney College on Saturday afternoon in Salem, VA. The Maroons, who win for the second time in as many home games against the Tigers, improve to 9-5 on the season and 3-4 in the Old Dominion Athletic Conference. The Tigers, who have now dropped two consecutive games, fall to 11-2 overall and 5-2 in league play. Roanoke's last win over a nationally-ranked opponent was a 61-58 win over #24 Virginia Wesleyan.
With the Maroons holding a slim 28-27 lead at the break, the game came down to shooting in the second half. The Maroons connected on 11 of their 20 shots from the field, 55 percent, while the Tigers were only able to make 12 of their 32 attempts, just 37.5 percent.
The Tigers got two free throws from sophomore Troy Kaase to open the second half, giving the visitors a 29-28 lead. The Maroons responded with buckets from
Curtis Peery and
Tee Jackson to give Roanoke a three-point edge. Hampden-Sydney's Drew Prehmus answered with a three, evening things at 32.
Senior
Jamiel Allen broke the tie with a three-pointer from the wing. HSC's Tyler Murray got points in the paint to bring the Tigers to within one, 35-34. That would be the Tigers' last field goal for a 7:19 stretch. That stretch allowed the Maroons to build themselves an eight-point advantage, 42-34.
Josh LaPorte matched Allen's effort with his sixth three of the season and
Ben Shrader hit a driving layup over two HSC defenders. Roanoke got the eight-point lead on two
Jared Butler foul shots.
The Tigers got to within five points (42-37) on a Kaase basket, but the Maroons scored the next five points to extend their lead to double-digits for the first time. Hampden-Sydney's Matt Green struck back with one of his game-best five three-pointers to bring the visitors back to within seven. Peery hit two foul shots and Shrader drained a three and the Maroons owned a 12-point lead. That lead would get out to as many as 16 points, 62-46, with just 1:51 left.
Hampden-Sydney made three of their nine three-pointers in the final 1:51, making things interesting. Prehmus drained his second three of the contest with 28 ticks left to make it an eight-point game, 69-61. The Maroons, however, were able to make free throws down the stretch to ice the game.
Neither team was able to take more than a five-point lead in the first half. The Tigers jumped out to a quick 7-2 lead, but the Maroons went on a 14-4 run to take a five-point lead of their own, 16-11, that with 8:29 left. Trailing 22-18, the Tigers used a 9-0 run of their own and took a 27-22 lead with 3:16 to go in the first. Troy Kaase's layup with 3:16 left would be the last points Hampden-Sydney would score in the half.
Ben Shrader hit a jumper and
Josh LaPorte scored in the paint to make the score 27-26 HSC. After the Tigers missed their a shot in the paint, the Maroons took the lead going into the break on two LaPorte free throws with 31 seconds left.
Shrader came off of Roanoke's bench to lead all scorers with 21 points. He missed only three of his 10 shots, made three three-pointers and also added three rebounds.
AJ Dowell, who played his freshman season for the Tigers, was the only other Maroon in double figures, getting 12. LaPorte lead all rebounders with 15, one shy of a career-high. Butler had a career-high eight assists.
Kaase recorded a double-double for the Tigers, scoring 20 points and adding 12 rebounds. He came into the game second in the ODAC in field goal percentage, but made just eight of his 18 shots.
The Maroons host Lynchburg College on Sunday afternoon in Salem. That game is scheduled to start at 3:00pm. Hampden-Sydney is at Washington & Lee on Sunday.
Roanoke vs. Hampden-Sydney Box Score
