LYNCHBURG, Va.- The Ferrum and Randolph men's basketball teams were neck and neck for a majority of their game on Tuesday night at Giles Gymnasium. There were 14 lead changes and 12 ties but the WildCats broke open the game late in the second half as they went on to defeat the Panthers 88-73.
The win snaps a three-game winless streak to Ferrum and gives Randolph an overall record of 3-4 and a 2-3 mark in conference play. Ferrum falls to 5-4 and 4-3 in the ODAC.
It was the visiting Panthers who got out to a quick start to begin the contest as they led 9-1 just over two minutes in. Randolph responded with a 10-0 run to take an 11-9 lead with 14:49 showing on the game clock. Neither team led by more than five points for the rest of the half. The teams went into the locker room at halftime knotted up at 39 each.
Ferrum started the second half with a 7-2 run to lead 46-41 at the 16:45 mark. Six ties and several lead changes followed for over 12 minutes of game time. Neither team had more than a two-possession advantage. The tide started to swing in Randolph's favor with the game tied at 71-71 with less than five minutes remaining. A 17-2 run to end the game, with the WildCat defense holding the Panthers to a single field goal, helped spur Randolph to victory.
"Impressive grit from our guys against a really talented Ferrum team," said head coach Pete Hamilton after the game. "Our guys did a heck of a job staying the course with our plan – even when Ferrum was hitting some tough shots in the second half. We went into tonight with a huge emphasis on heavy guard pressure and our perimeter guys across the board really did a nice job of playing assertive from the jump. I think we got Ferrum's perimeter guys to take a pause at times and we were able to challenge 3's a little easier because it."
Evan Makle (Dumfries Va./Christ Chapel Academy) scored 20 of his career-high 26 points in the second half. He shot 7-of-9 from the field in the period and hit 4-of-6 three-point shots. Overall, Makle was 6-of-9 from beyond the three-point arc on the evening.
After going 12-of-34 in the first half, the WildCat offense heated up in the second half as it was 14-of-25 (56%) to finish 26-of-59 (44.1%) overall. Randolph had a slight edge in rebounds 43-41. The WildCats also outscored the Panthers 20-10 in points off turnovers, 36-26 in points in the paint, and 12-2 in fast break points.
"I think your eye goes to the offensive end when looking at the box score – but I think our defensive presence and pressure from the jump helped win us the game and created our offensive success," said Hamilton. "We track "kills" throughout a game – getting three stops in a row. We were able to get 9 "kills" tonight which is above our goal mark. We also created 6 "Winning Plays" – plays we track as a coaching staff where a guy hits the deck from drawing a charge or securing a loose ball. Nine "Kills" and six "Winning Plays" are difference making numbers for us."
It was a physical game overall as the teams were whistled for a total of 47 fouls. The WildCats had the better performance at the charity stripe as they shot 25-of-37 (67.6%) to Ferrum's 12-of-20 (60%).
Four other WildCats reached double figures with Justin Dula (Taylorsville, N.C./Alexander Central), CJ Loving (Madison Heights, Va./Amherst County), and Danny Bickey (Beckley, W.V./Woodrow Wilson) 14 boards and Dula 13. Loving added five assists while Dula added four assists and two blocked shots. Jordan Phillips-McLoyd (Johnson City, Tenn./Science Hill) chipped in 10 points and four rebounds.
"Once again, the contributions across the board are awesome to see as a coach," Hamilton noted. "Five guys in double figures and CJ and Dula posting double-doubles – when we are so well-balanced we can be competitive with a lot of teams. How about Evan Makle coming off the bench with a spark? The guy can shoot it and when he plays on balance and finds the rim early we're good with him taking any of those shots he found tonight. The greatest part of his run in the second half was the selflessness and awareness of his teammates to continue to find him. He and Jordan hit some monster 3's down the stretch to help us extend the lead to finish."
Randolph is back at Giles Gymnasium this Friday as it hosts Roanoke. The WildCats will look to avenge an 80-59 loss to the Maroons back on February 9.
"Really proud of our growth – specifically over the last eight days, Hamilton said. "Excited to continue to show up and enjoy each day we get with these guys."
