HARRISONBURG, Va.- Riding a two-game winning streak, the Randolph men's basketball team traveled to Eastern Mennonite to take on the Royals and keep their winning streak going. EMU, however, got the best of the WildCats as it won 81-57.

Randolph led 10-7 with 14:27 remaining in the first quarter following a three-point basket by Jerry Goodman (Suffolk, Va./Portsmouth Christian School). Eastern Mennonite then went on a 17-1 run to go ahead 24-11 with 9:41 left in the period. The WildCats closed to six points, 29-23, with 5:12 showing on the clock. A 12-7 run by the Royals to end the half put the home team up 41-30 at the break.

Jordan Phillips-McLoyd's (Johnson City, Tenn./Science Hill) jumper to start the second half brought the WildCats' deficit down to single digits. Eastern Mennonite moved their lead back up to double digits going ahead 57-40 with 12:08 on the clock. A 9-0 run by the Royals increased their lead to 25 points, 69-44, with 7:25 remaining to play. EMU's lead never dipped below 18 points as the Royals remained comfortably ahead for the remainder of the period.

I thought Ty Clingerman (seven points) gave us a winning effort today off the bench," said head coach Pete Hamilton. "Unfortunately, we let our shots not falling early start to affect our defensive presence."

The WildCats were 23-of-68 (33.8%) from the floor and just 8-of-31 (25.8%) from behind the three point arc. Eastern Mennonite was 30-of-68 (44.1%) overall and 14-of-31 (45.2%) in three-point attempts. The Royals controlled the glass 49-38.

Phillips-McLoyd led all scorers with 15 points and also grabbed seven rebounds. Goodman finished with 12 points. Danny Bickey (Beckley, W.V./Woodrow Wilson) added 10 points.

"Tough to take a step back when we're hoping to start peaking heading into the final stages," said Hamilton. "An off day tomorrow and a week of opportunity ahead with two home games."

Randolph hosts Virginia Wesleyan on Faculty-Staff Appreciation Night on Wednesday. Game time will be at 7:00 p.m.