DANVILLE, Va.- The Randolph men's basketball team headed on the road to Averett for a late Saturday ODAC matchup. The game went to double overtime where Rayvon Graham's (Lynchburg, Va./E.C. Glass) jump shot with just over a second left proved to be the game-winner as the WildCats came away with a 97-95 victory.
The win for the WildCats is their first over the Cougars in seven meetings. Randolph improves to 8-14 overall and 3-11 in conference play.
Randolph trailed 22-20 with 6:03 to play in the first half. The WildCats went on a 14-3 run to pull ahead 36-24 with 2:02 remaining in the period. Averett closed to within eight points at halftime.
In the second half, Randolph maintained its advantage through over four minutes of game time. The Cougars were able to close their deficit to one possession, 45-43, with 14:07 on the game clock. Randolph led 51-46 at 11:37 but six quick points by the Cougars put the home team ahead 52-51 just over the 10-minute mark. The two teams would exchange leads with the game being tied at 57-all at 7:24. Averett then went on a 21-7 that gave it a 10-point lead with 2:40 remaining in the second half. Randolph responded with a 12-3 run that culminated in Bryce Watlington's (Newport News, Va.) game-tying layup with 30 seconds left. Averett's Clay Hodges missed a potential game-winning three-point basket at the buzzer as the game headed to the first overtime.
In the first overtime, Jordan Phillips-McLoyd's (Johnson City, Tenn./Science Hill) three-point basket six seconds in put the WildCats ahead 80-77. Randolph was ahead by as much as five points, 85-80, after a jump shot by Graham with 1:24 on the clock. Averett then went on a 7-2 run to end the period tying the game at 87-87 to force a second overtime.
Amari Gorham's (Yorktown, Va./Yorktown) three-point basket to start the second OT gave Randolph a 90-87 lead at 4:11. Trailing 95-93 with 1:30 on the clock, Graham tied the game at 95-all at 1:08. After the Cougars missed a couple of shot attempts, the WildCats had possession. Graham then brought the ball up and sank a long field goal just inside the arc to put the 'Cats ahead for good.
Randolph finished 34-of-74 (45.9%) from the floor and was 10-of-27 (37%) from behind the three-point arc. The 'Cats were 19-of-23 from the free throw line. Averett went 30-of-63 (47.6%) overall and just 4-of-18 (22.2%) in three-point attempts. The Cougars were 31-of-39 (79.5%) from the charting stripe.
Averett controlled the glass with a 46-35 advantage. Randolph led in points off turnovers 17-9, second chance points 20-7 and bench points 30-26.
Phillips-McLoyd led Randolph with 30 points to go with five rebounds and three assists. Graham finished with 19 points, seven rebounds, and six assists. Elijah Cox (Galax, Va./Carroll County) contributed 11 points.
Randolph travels to Ferrum tomorrow in a reschedule contest from last week. Game time will be at 2:00 p.m.