GREENSBORO, N.C. – Senior Jake Duncan made six three-pointers and scored a career- and game-high 29 points in visiting Hampden-Sydney College's 64-58 Old Dominion Athletic Conference (ODAC) basketball win at Guilford College Saturday.
The Tigers' Malik Crute added 16 points, including three critical three-pointers in the game's final minutes, which helped Hampden-Sydney (7-10, 3-5 ODAC) end a four-game losing skid. The Tigers halted the Quakers' (14-3, 7-1 ODAC) nine-game winning skein and knocked Guilford from the ranks of the ODAC unbeaten.
Duncan came off the bench with 14:23 left before halftime and three seconds later connected on the first of six straight three-point shots. His fourth three-pointer capped a 14-2 run, which opened a 22-7 Tigers' lead. Duncan's sixth and final trifecta marked the first half's final points and gave the visitors a 32-23 edge.
Sparked by Kyler Gregory, Dominique Henderson and Jarrod Rogers, Guilford rallied in the second half. A Rogers' basket brought the Quakers to within 37-34, but Duncan scored five straight to restore Hampden-Sydney's lead. A Henderson jumper tied the game at 45-45 with 8:36 remaining and a Carson Long three-pointer gave Guilford its first lead of the second half, 50-49, with 5:57 left in regulation.
The lead changed hands six times over the next two minutes before Crute took over. His three-pointer with five minutes left gave Hampden-Sydney a short-lived 54-52 margin, but his triple 68 seconds later put the Tigers ahead for good, 57-56. After Guilford missed twice on the ensuing possession, Crute buried his fourth and final three, which made it a 60-56 game. After another Tigers' stop and timeout, Crute assisted on a Josh Katowitz layup that opened a six-point spread and sealed the win.
While Guilford entered with the fourth-best defensive field-goal percentage (.367) in NCAA Division III, Hampden-Sydney shot 51.1 percent from the floor. The Tigers made season-high 57.1 percent (12-of-21) of three-pointers, the best percentage by a Quakers' opponent this year.
Duncan (29 points) and Crute (16 points) combined to score 45 of the Tigers' 64 points. Crute and JaVonte Reddick (6 points) shared team-high rebounding honors with eight. The Tigers enjoyed a 38-36 rebounding edge to become the first Guilford opponent to win the battle of the boards this year. Crute also dished out a game-best five assists and made two of Hampden-Sydney's five blocked shots.
Rogers' career-high 13 points paced Guilford's scoring. Henderson finished with 11 points, all in the second half. Gregory had 10 points on five-of-seven shooting. Alston Thompson managed four points and a game-best nine rebounds. Guilford shot 33.3 percent from the floor, its lowest shooting percentage since November.
Coach Tom Palombo's Quakers seek to start a new winning streak Wednesday (1/25) at league-rival Lynchburg College.