Lynchburg Reporter

Men’s Basketball Knocks off Bruins 80-76

 The Randolph men's basketball team hosted its first game of the new year as they welcomed Carolina University to Giles Gymnasium on Monday afternoon. The WildCats got double-digit performances from four of their starters as they were able to defeat the Bruins 80-76.

The win stops Randolph's winless streak at eight games. The team's overall record improves to 4-9.

"Great to get one entering 2023," said head coach Pete Hamilton after the game. "Our guys have really been impressive with the way they have approached the past month.  We really had been playing well in a lot of games that didn't finish our way and a credit to our guys for continuing to trust each other and trust the right way to operate."

The Bruins came out shooting on the first half as they attempted one three after another. Randolph tried to keep pace as the score was tied at 12-12 at 14:41. The 'Cats used a 19-5 run spanning over six and a half minutes of game time as they went ahead 31-17 with 7:20 remaining in the period. Carolina used a run of their own as a 20-4 spurt gave the Bruins a 37-35 lead with 3:06 left on the clock. The WildCats closed out the period outscoring the Bruins 7-0 in the final two minutes to go into the locker room up 42-37.

 In the second half, Randolph led 50-42 with just under 16 minutes remaining in the game. Five straight points from the Bruins cut the advantage to three points. The WildCats led by as many as nine points, 66-57, following a three-point basket by Cole Perry (Salisbury, N.C./Jesse Carson HS) with 7:25 remaining. Carolina used a 10-4 run to make it a one-possession contest, 70-67, with 1:49 to play. A Danny Bickey (Beckley, W.V./Woodrow Wilson) trey at 1:05 put the 'Cats ahead 73-67. The Bruins were able to whittle down their deficit to two points, 73-71, with 32 ticks remaining. In the end, Randolph made seven free throws in the last 27 seconds to hold off Carolina.

The WildCats shot 29-of-70 (41.4%) from the floor and 11-of-33 (33.3%) from behind the three-point arc. The Bruins shot 21-of-69 (30.4%) overall and were just 14-of-50 (28%) in three-point attempts.

Randolph led in total rebounds 51-44. The WildCats led in points in the paint 32-14.

Jordan Phillips-McLoyd (Johnson City, Tenn./Science Hill) led the team with 17 points on 6-of-13 shooting and was 4-of-8 in three-point attempts. He also grabbed six rebounds. Bickey finished with 16 points and was 4-of-9 from behind the three-point arc. Jerry Goodman (Suffolk, Va./Portsmouth Christian School) added 12 points, four assists, and three rebounds. Perry was just shy of a double-double effort with 10 points and nine rebounds. Hunter Verling (Lake Mary, Fla./Lake Mary HS) had a strong performance with eight points and seven rebounds.

"Good to see a few near double doubles from Cole and Hunter, noted Hamilton.  "Hunter really lifted us off the bench and ended with a +11 +/- which is awesome to see.  His energy and enthusiasm is unmatched when he has it going the right way.  He also finished everything around the rim for us which was huge considering the attention they were giving Jordan and Bickey. Rayvon and Jerry set our pace well tonight. We didn't shoot as a high a percentage as we'd like but i thought for the most part we took some shots that we work on in practice and that we like in games.  If we shoot a little better maybe, we close this one out a little easier."  

The WildCats return to ODAC play on Wednesday as they host Virginia Wesleyan. Game time will be at 7:00 p.m.

"It's been a tough month in the W column for us but our guys are doing the right things," said Hamilton.  "I am excited to get into ODAC play with our group."

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