LYNCHBURG, Va.- The Randolph men's basketball team played the first of two games on Tuesday at the Wayne Proffitt Classic held at the University of Lynchburg. The WildCats faced Marymount and were able to hold off the Saints 63-59.
The win evens Randolph's record at 5-5. The Saints record is also now 5-5.
Landon Wagoner (Martinsville, Va./ Carlisle School) scored the WildCats' first basket on a three-point shot to put Randolph ahead 3-0. Marymount then went on a 9-2 run to go ahead 9-5 at 15:52. Randolph countered with a 10-0 run to regain the lead and go up 15-9. MU scored seven straight points to grab the lead back at 16-15. The 'Cats inched ahead by three points, 19-16, with under nine minutes remaining in the half. Marymount would go on to knot the score at 27-27 with 2:09 left in the period and took a one-point lead, 30-29, with 1:24 showing on the clock. After Randolph briefly went ahead and Marymount regained its lead, the WildCats ended the period with threes by Ryan Viruso (Davidson, N.C./Hough HS) and Evan Wiehe (Northfield, OH/Nordonia) to go into the locker room up 38-33.
In the second half, a jumper by the Saints' Wyatt Hockenbery cut the Randolph lead to three points, 38-35. The WildCats responded with an 11-0 run to take its biggest lead of the game, 46-35. Marymount cut into the Randolph lead but the 'Cats still remained out in front.
Randolph led 55-47 with exactly 10 minutes remaining in regulation. Marymount's 10-0 run spanning over four minutes of game time put it ahead 57-55 with 5:43 showing on the game clock. The WildCats then used a 7-2 run to take a 62-59 lead with 2:39 left. Danny Bickey (Beckley, W.V./Woodrow Wilson) made three free throws after getting fouled and then made a three-point basket during the run. The Saints missed eight shots from the field in the final 2:13 of game time as Randolph hung on for the victory.
Randolph converted 21-of-55 shot attempts (38.2%) and was good on 11-of-26 (42.3%) of its three-point attempts. Marymount went 23-of-60 (38.3%) from the field but made just 5-of-17 (29.4%) from behind the three-point arc.
"Loved the defensive effort today," said head coach Pete Hamilton. "Marymount has some perimeter players that can really get going and I think our full court pressure and containment really made a huge difference in taking them out of rhythm."
Bickey led all scorers with 22 points adding four rebounds and one blocked shot. Wiehe finished with 13 points. Wagoner put up 11 points, five rebounds, and three blocked shots.
"Landon Wagoner really got us going early. His ability to stretch the floor offensively can keep making things open up for us. Evan Wiehe hit some really big shots for us but he also took the challenge of guarding Marymount best scorer down the stretch and did a hell of a job."
Randolph takes on Centre College tomorrow afternoon on the second day of the Classic. Game time will be at 1:00 p.m.
"Our guys have been able to come away from the last two games feeling like our effort was hard for our opponent to match," said Hamilton. "I hope that can be something we continue to string together and have become a part of our identity."
