For Immediate Release – 1/14/17 - #155
'Cats Use Big-Second Half to Leave Lexington Victorious

LEXINGTON, VA – The Randolph College men's basketball team outscored Washington and Lee University 52-26 in the second half on Saturday.  It led the WildCats to a 73-59 comeback win over the Generals in Old Dominion Athletic Conference (ODAC) play.

Despite an emphatic dunk by Nick Goble (off a Ryan Fields pass), the Generals controlled the early minutes.  W&L held a 9-2 lead after Andy Kleinlein hit a layup at the 16:36 mark.  Colton Lee responded right away with a shot from behind the arc, but Washington and Lee answered with another run.

Connor MacIssac scored twice for the hosts to push the lead to eight.  However, Fields came back with a traditional three-point play.  The Generals scored the next six, but Brian Smith helped jumpstart the first Randolph run.

He hit a three, which Fields followed with a jumper.  Andy Toe made the deficit six points, but the Generals pushed it back to 10 with 4:17 left in the half.  Fields and Toe combined for six points over the remaining time, but W&L added eight, notching the score at 33-21 entering the second.

However, the 15 minutes in between halves was what the WildCats needed.  It was at this point the team began its impressive run.  Fields made a layup at the beginning, and while it was answered on the other end, it would start the first burst.  Toe grabbed an offensive rebound and scored on the put back.  Goble added a free throw and Reid Jacoby knocked down a three, cutting the deficit to six.

Washington and Lee did have a run in them for the second half.  The hosts scored eight of 11, with Lee's three separating it.  It pushed the lead back to 11, but Fields helped the comeback get back on track.  He made a layup, and following a three from the Generals, Chase VanHorn hit his own.  Toe then converted an and-one to bring it back to six.

Following a W&L layup, Fields and Toe combined again for six-straight points.  It was answered by four on the other side, but Smith hit his second trey of the game at the 9:21 mark.  However, Washington and Lee extended the lead back to six with just over eight minutes left.

At that point, Fields hit a three, and it would mark the last time the lead would be that size for the Generals.  Toe hit two-straight layups, giving the 'Cats the 56-55 lead.  The hosts made a close shot, but Jacoby took the lead right back.  Jeremiah Davis added to it with a tip-in off of a Fields missed jumper.

Clayton Murtha hit one free throw with 4:16 remaining, but it would be all WildCats from there on out.  Fields, Jacoby, and Davis all chipped in two points over the next minute, extending the advantage to eight.  Goble made it 10 after a timeout with a nice bank shot.  Smith then knocked down an emphatic three, with 1:32 left, putting the score at 71-58.  Murtha added one more free throw, but Fields scored to make the final tally of 73-59.

Fields led all scorers with 22 points, and tied for the game-high of nine rebounds.  Toe added a career-high of 17 points.  Jacoby chipped in with seven points, but tied the program, single-game record of 11 assists.  For his career, he now has 210, which moves him into third on the all-time list.  Murtha led the Generals (6-9 overall, 2-4 ODAC) with 14 points.

Randolph (5-10, 2-4) returns home for two games this week.  The WildCats host Roanoke College (6-8, 1-5) on Wednesday at 7 p.m.

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