LEXINGTON, Va. - First-year guard QJ Peterson poured in 38 points and senior big man D.J. Covington added 29 as the VMI Keydets defeated Bridgewater College 112-86 Wednesday evening in Cameron Hall.
Peterson scored 28 of his points in the first half as the Keydets opened up a 54-39 lead at the break. Peterson hit 15 of his 23 shots in the game, including 5-of-11 from beyond the arc. Covington worked the paint and hit 12-of-18 shots. The big man also grabbed 10 rebounds.
Peterson opened the game with a 15-footer, but Tavis Stapleton answered with a long 3-pointer to give Bridgewater a 3-2 lead. Point guard Rodney Glasgow's jumper put the Keydets up by a point before a tip-in by Stapleton gave Bridgewater its final lead at 5-4.
The Eagles stayed within striking distance for most of the first half and trailed by just 10 points, 37-27, with 6:27 left in the half. Peterson then hit three straight 3-pointers in a span of 48 seconds to push the lead to 46-27 with 5:11 left on the clock.
Bridgewater weathered the Peterson outburst and cut the lead to 15 points when Stapleton hit a jumper in the final minute of the half to trim the VMI lead to 54-39 at the break.
Peterson cooled off in the second half, but Covington took over and owned the paint, scoring 17 of his 29 points in the second half as the Keydets finished off the 112-86 victory.
Bridgewater put four players in double figures with Ed Reddick leading the way with 19 points. Reddick made 8-of-15 shots and also pulled down six rebounds. Stapleton and Kenneth Waugh each scored 13 points and Daniel McClain added 10. Waugh hit 3-of-4 shots from beyond the arc and McClain made five of his six shot attempts. Eagles point guard Zach Hunter turned in a solid floor game with five assists and just one turnover.
The Eagles battled the Keydets to a virtual standoff on the boards, losing the rebounding battle 52-50. Romie Powell pulled down seven rebounds to lead the Bridgewater efforts on the glass.
Bridgewater shot 40.9 percent from the floor, making 36 of its 88 shots. VMI connected on 48.4 percent, hitting 44-of-19 shot attempts.
The Eagles return to action Saturday with a neutral site contest against Greensboro College. The game will be played at Roanoke College with a 2 p.m. tipoff.