LEXINGTON, Va. -- Washington and Lee posted a 46-37 halftime lead, but could not hold on as Hampden-Sydney defeated the Generals, 81-75, in ODAC men's basketball action on Saturday afternoon at the Warner Center.
W&L shot 62.1 percent (18-of-29) from the field in the opening half and extended its lead to 11 points as freshman forward Femi Kusimo (Charleston, W.Va./Charleston Catholic) made a jumper to begin the second stanza. However, the Tigers outscored the Generals 14-2 over the next 3:22 to take a 51-50 lead.
Hampden-Sydney pushed out to a 62-56 lead with 10:10 remaining, but W&L fought back to tie the game at 64-64 with 7:02 remaining in the game. From there, H-SC went on a 9-2 run to assume a 73-66 lead with 5:14 remaining and would hold on for the win.
The Tigers (14-7, 9-5) outscored W&L 25-11 at the foul line and held a 31-23 edge on the boards. The Generals shot just 38.5 percent in the second half, while the Tigers hit 58.3 percent of their shots in the second stanza and 55.6 percent for the game.
The Generals (2-19, 0-14) were led by sophomore guard Chris Halkitis (New Port Richey, Fla./Ridgewood), who tallied 19 points. Freshman forward Greg Bienemann (Chatham, N.J./Chatham) totaled 15 points, while Kusimo notched 14 points and five steals. Senior guard Mike Stuart (Warrenton, Va./Fauquier) added 11 points and three assists.
Hampden-Sydney was paced by freshman guard Drew Prehmus (Atlanta, Ga./Wesleyan), who totaled 18 points and four assists. Freshman guard A.J. Dowell (Roanoke, Va./Salem) registered 17 points, while freshman forward Troy Kaase (Roanoke, Va./Cave Spring) chipped in 13 points.
Washington and Lee returns to action on Sunday as it hosts Lynchburg for a 2:00 pm contest.
-- GENERALS --
