HAMPDEN-SYDNEY, VA - Hampden-Sydney Basketball used stifling defense to take down the Maroons of Roanoke College 100-62 in ODAC action from Fleet Gymnasium on Saturday afternoon. With the 100 points, Sunday is buy one, get one free Boberry Biscuits at the Bojangles of Farmville. Offer is valid only on Sunday at the Farmville location.
The game was close in the early going as a three pointer and a layup from Mike Murray (Norfolk, VA / Norfolk Christian) was answered by a three and layup from the Maroons. Cam Anderson (Charlottesville, VA / Blue Ridge) put the Tigers back up 8-5 following a layup and free throw, but the Maroons went on an 8-0 run over the next 2:12 to take a 13-8 lead. Leon Hargrove (Raleigh, NC / Middle Creek) ended the Maroon streak with back-to-back layups to make it 13-12 Roanoke at the 13:43 mark. Andrew Daniels then sank two free throws to push the advantage back out to three, but five straight Roanoke turnovers led to layups from Greg Lewis (Mechanicsville, VA / Hanover) and Murray and two Anderson free throws to make it a 18-15 Tiger lead at 11:23.
Jordan Thacker ended the turnover fest with a jumper on the next possession, but a Sam Dale (Charlottesville, VA / Covenant) layup and free throw followed by a Harrison George (Raleigh, NC / Leesville Road) jump shot pushed the lead out to 23-17 with 9:58 left in the half. Following another Thacker jumper at 9:07 to cut the advantage to four, Anderson made a free throw along with two Alex Potapov (Moscow, Russia / Florida Air) layups to give Hampden-Sydney a 30-21 lead at 6:26. Daniels answered with a layup while Lewis and Thacker traded jumpers to make it 33-26, but H-SC then went on an 8-0 to push the lead out to 41-26 with just over three minutes left in the half. Roanoke would score six of the last eight points of the half to go down 43-33 into intermission.
Roanoke's Cameron Smith opened the second-half with a jumper, but it was all Hampden-Sydney the rest of the game. H-SC scored the next 18 points and held the Maroons without a point for 5:32 to go up 61-37 with 14:12 left in the contest. The lead would balloon to as many as 43, and Kodie Critzer (Charlottesville, VA / St. Anne's-Belfield) would drain a three-pointer with 52 seconds left as the Tigers eclipsed the 100-point plateau.
Every single Tiger that played scored at least two points in the most balanced scoring game of the season for Hampden-Sydney. Only three players scored in double-figures, led by 12 from Anderson. He also added five rebounds, two assists, and two steals while shooting 4-6 from the floor and 4-5 from the free throw line. Sasha Obradovic (Belgrade, Serbia / Hawaii Prep) tallied 11 points, three rebounds, and two steals in only nine minutes while Lewis added 10 points and three steals. Potapov posted eight points, five rebounds, two assists, and two steals while George added eight points, a team-high seven caroms, and two assists.
Kwasi Amponsah, the ODAC's second leading scorer and averaging over 20 points a game coming in to the contest, scored just eight points, going 1-5 from the floor with five turnovers as Keegan Wetzel (Mebane, NC / Eastern Alamance), Lewis, and a combination of other Tigers locked him up all game. Daniels was the only Maroon in double figures with 14 points.
Hampden-Sydney shot 52.6% (40-76) overall, 33.3% (9-27) from three, and 61.1% (11-18) from the free throw stripe. Roanoke was limited to 38.2% (21-55) from the floor, 30% (6-20) from beyond the arc, and 60.9% (14-23) at the free throw line. The Tigers posted a 22:9 assist-to-turnover ratio while Roanoke was 10:25. H-SC abused Roanoke on the turnovers, holding a 33-2 advantage in points off turnovers. H-SC also held a 48-24 edge in points in the paint and a 66-31 advantage in bench points.
Hampden-Sydney closes out the pre-Christmas Break portion of the schedule with a home game against Marygrove College on December 20 at 7 pm for Santa Night.