LEXINGTON, Va. -- Washington and Lee erased a 16-point second-half deficit to take a three-point lead (60-57) with just 46 seconds remaining, but could not hang on in falling to 24th-ranked Guilford, 62-61, in ODAC men's basketball action on Wednesday evening at the Warner Center.
W&L had a chance to win the game with 0.3 seconds remaining as junior forward Greg Bienemann (Chatham, N.J./Chatham) was fouled on a layup attempt. However, Bienemann missed both free throws and the Quakers (15-3, 9-3) escaped with the one-point victory.
W&L (10-7, 5-6) shot just 25.9 percent (7-27) in the first half and trailed the Quakers 33-15 at the break. Guilford still held a 16-point lead (47-31) with 12:21 left in the game, but the Generals used a 16-2 run over the next 5:12 to cut it to a two-point game (49-47) with 7:09 left. Guilford held the lead until W&L tied it at 54-54 with 3:30 left on a three-pointer by sophomore forward Kirk Jones (Maple Glenn, Pa./Germantown Academy).
A pair of free throws by Guilford junior center Ben Strong (Chapel Hill, N.C./Chapel Hill) at the 3:17 mark gave the Quakers a 56-54 lead, but another Jones' three-pointer just 27 seconds later gave W&L its first lead (57-56) since the score was 8-6.
W&L pushed out to a 60-57 advantage with 46 seconds left on a layup by senior forward Alex White (Baltimore, Md./McDonogh), but a layup by Strong cut it back to a one-point game (60-59) just three seconds later. A foul sent W&L sophomore guard Isaiah Goodman (Richfield, Minn./Holy Angels) to the stripe with 31 seconds left and he made 1-of-2 charity tosses for a 61-59 lead. After a Guilford turnover, W&L sophomore guard Chris McHugh (Chatham, N.J./Chatham) was fouled went to the foul line for two shots with 26 seconds left. McHugh missed both free throws and Guilford junior forward Eric Belkowski (Rockingham, N.C./Richmond Senior) drilled a three-pointer with 12 seconds left setting up the Generals' final possession that ended with Bienemann's missed free throws.
W&L recovered from its cold first-half shooting to nail 54.5 percent (18-33) in the second half, but the Generals shot just 4-of-15 from the foul line, including 4-of-14 in the second half. Guilford shot just 8-for-21 (.381) in the second stanza, but hit 19-of-23 free throws for the game.
The Generals were led by Jones' 14 points and seven rebounds. Freshman forward Zac White (Baltimore, Md./Park School) totaled 11 points, while brother Alex White notched 10 points. Bienemann registered eight points and eight rebounds.
Guilford was paced by Strong, who tallied 23 points and 12 rebounds. Belkowski posted 18 points and seven boards.
Washington and Lee returns to action on Saturday as it hosts Randolph-Macon for a 2:00 pm contest.
-- GENERALS --
