ASHLAND, Va. - Freshman Josh Talbert (Virginia Beach, Va./Kellam) scored 16 points and snagged a season-best seven steals, and sophomore Ian Robertson (Lewes, Del./Cape Henlopen) added 10 points and grabbed a career-high eight rebounds, as the third-ranked Randolph-Macon men's basketball team shook off a rough start to record a 79-54 ODAC victory on Saturday afternoon.

The Basics:

Score: Randolph-Macon 79, Emory & Henry 54

Location/Venue: Ashland, Va./Crenshaw Gym

Records: R-MC 19-1, 11-0 ODAC; E&H 4-16, 1-10 ODAC

How it Happened:

• The Wasps scored the first nine points of the game before three-pointers by sophomore Daquan Morris (Philadelphia, Pa./Hill School), Robertson and junior Buzz Anthony (Arnold, Md./Archbishop Spalding), and a tap by freshman Miles Mallory (Beltsville, Md./St. Vincent Pallotti), made up an 11-2 run as the Yellow Jackets tied the game at 11-11 with 14;30 left in the first half. E&H had the next three points before Talbert had a layup and a pair of free throws to give R-MC its first lead at 15-14 with 9:50 remaining. The Wasps would take a 27-22 lead before the Yellow Jackets would tally the final 10 points of the period to take a 32-27 advantage at the break. Robertson had a layup and a trey on a between-the-legs backward pass from Anthony to spark the run and added a pair of free throws with 53 seconds left. Robertson led R-MC with 10 points in the first half, while Talbert added seven and Morris put in six. The Yellow Jacket defense forced 13 E&H turnovers in the first period.
• Senior Corey Bays (Bel Air, Md./CM Wright) started the second half with a layup and a three-pointer to extend the run to 15-0 and give the home team a 37-27 lead with 18:15 left in the second half. After a trey by the Wasps, junior David Funderburg (Greensboro, N.C./Northwest Guilford) had two free throws and a layup to spark an 11-0 spurt that was capped by a Talbert triple as R-MC took a 48-30 advantage with 14:35 remaining. Layups by Morris and Funderburg gave the Yellow Jackets a 20-point lead at 52-32 with 13 minutes left. Back-to-back treys by Bays pushed the advantage to 25 at 63-38 with 8:20 remaining. A jumper in the lane by senior Kent Kilgroe (St. Petersburg, Fla./Shorecrest Prep) gave R-MC its largest at 77-50 with 2:45 left. The Yellow Jackets would register the 79-54 victory.

By The Numbers:

• R-MC had three players score in double figures. Along with 16 by Talbert and 10 by Robertson, Bays added 13, all in the second half.
• The Yellow Jackets outscored E&H 47-27 in the second half after a 32-27 edge in the first half.
• The R-MC defense forced a season-high 27 turnovers and held a 33-18 advantage on points from turnovers. The Yellow Jackets had a season-best 16 steals.
• The Yellow Jackets had 22 assists on 28 field goals. Anthony and senior Korey Turner (Midlothian, Va./Amelia Academy) both had five assists.

For The Record

• R-MC remains the only team without a loss in ODAC play. The Yellow Jackets are 11-0 in conference contests. All other ODAC teams have at least two league losses.
• The Yellow Jackets have won seven straight games.
• R-MC has won 23 straight home games, one away from Swarthmore's longest current streak in Division III.
• The Yellow Jackets have won 19 of the past 20 meetings with the Wasps.
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Up Next:

• Randolph-Macon will travel to Bridgewater on Wednesday, Feb. 5 for a 7 p.m. ODAC contest.