Men's Basketball

W&L Men's Basketball Falls to Roanoke, 76-66

Men's Basketball

W&L Men's Basketball Falls to Roanoke, 76-66

SALEM, Va. – Fourth-seeded Roanoke College shot 50.8 percent from the floor en route to a 76-66 victory over fifth-seeded Washington and Lee in the first round of the 2008 Old Dominion Athletic Conference Men's Basketball Tournament on Friday afternoon at the Salem Civic Center.

Roanoke (18-8) built an eight-point lead (20-12) with 13:03 left in the opening stanza, but W&L countered with a 10-2 run over the following 2:43 to tie the game at 22-22 at the 10:20 mark. However, the Maroons out-scored the Generals, 17-10, to close out the half en route to a 39-32 lead at the break.

RC extended its lead to nine points (43-34) at 18:41, but W&L responded with a 9-0 surge to knot the contest at 43-43 at 14:29. W&L took its first lead of the contest (51-49) on an old fashioned three-point play by senior forward Greg Bienemann (Chatham, N.J./Chatham) at the 11:29 mark, but Roanoke senior guard A.J. Dowell scored a three-pointer to give the Maroons the lead for good (56-54) at 9:29 and they connected on 9-of-12 foul shots down the stretch to secure the win.

W&L was paced by Bienemann, who notched a game-high 17 points, seven rebounds and four blocks. He finishes his career with 1,573 points, good for sixth all-time at Washington and Lee. Junior guard Chris McHugh (Chatham, N.J./Chatham) posted a career-high 17 markers on 5-of-9 shooting from three-point range, while junior guard Isaiah Goodman (Richfield, Minn./Holy Angels) registered 11 points. Sophomore forward Zac White (Baltimore, Md./Park School) added 10 points and senior forward Femi Kusimo (Cross Lanes, Va./Charleston Catholic) posted four points and a game-high 13 rebounds in his final contest.

Dowell and junior forward Curtis Peery led the Maroons with 16 points each. Junior guard Zach Milton chipped in 14 points. The loss ended Washington and Lee's season at 15-11 overall, while Roanoke advances to the semifinals where it will face top-seeded Guilford on Saturday at 6:00 pm.

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