SALEM, VA--The Roanoke College men's basketball team engaged in a close battle with visiting Bridgewater College on Wednesday night, pulling away late to register a 68-54 victory in Salem, VA. The Maroons improve to 13-10 overall and 7-9 in the ODAC, and stay one game behind sixth-place Emory & Henry, which defeated Washington & Lee on Wednesday. Bridgewater falls to 9-12 overall and 6-10 in the ODAC, one game behind Roanoke and tied with Eastern Mennonite for seventh place.

The Maroons started out shooting well from the field, making eight of their first 11 shots and leading 23-13 with 9:38 remaining. Roanoke went cold the rest of the half, though, making just one field goal the rest of the way, while the Eagles went on a 16-3 run and went into the break up 29-26. The Maroons ended the first period shooting 10-for-29 (35%), while Bridgewater went 11-for-29 (38%).

In the second half, Roanoke chipped away at the deficit, and took the lead for good at 7:42 after sophomore Josh LaPorte missed a tip-in, grabbed the rebound and made both the basket and the ensuing free throw, putting the Maroons ahead 51-49. Roanoke outscored Bridgewater 17-5 the rest of the way and finished the evening with a 14-point victory. The Maroons' shooting was vastly improved in the second half, as the team went 15-for-28 (54%), including 6-for-8 from behind the three-point arc; conversely, the Eagles struggled, shooting just 6-for-24 (25%). In all, the game saw eleven lead changes and seven ties.

Senior Jared Butler led Roanoke with 14 points, while Laporte added 13 points and nine rebounds, and sophomore Ben Shrader chipped in with ten points. Sophomore Josh Fox had a team-high 14 points for Bridgewater.

Next up for the Maroons is their next-to-last regular-season game on Saturday, when they travel to Guilford for a 2 p.m. tip-off; Bridgewater visits Virginia Wesleyan on Saturday for their penultimate regular-season game at 5 p.m.

Roanoke vs. Bridgewater Box Score