FREDERICKSBURG, Va. — The Washington and Lee men's basketball team outscored the Merchant Marine Academy, 42-25, in the second half on its way to a 65-53 victory on Sunday in the consolation game of the Hyatt Place Tipoff Tournament hosted by Mary Washington.
 
The Mariners (1-2) held a five-point edge (28-23) at intermission, but the Generals (2-1) trimmed the deficit to two, 41-39, on a three-pointer by junior forward William Brueggeman (Houston, Texas/Strake Jesuit College Prep) with 15:07 left in the contest.
 
First-year guard Sam Wise (Winchester, Va./John Handley) then forced a turnover and assisted on jumper by sophomore guard Mark Lamendola (Pittsburgh, Pa./Mount Lebanon), as W&L tied the game (41-41) at the 13:39 mark. Lamendola then dropped in a layup to put the Blue and White in front, 43-41, with 11:57 remaining in the contest.
 
The Merchant Marine Academy tied the game (43-43) on a couple of free throws, but then over the next six minutes, the Generals went on a 13-0 run to secure the victory. Brueggeman ignited the burst with a triple and then Wise converted a layup.
 
Junior forward Curtis Mitchell (Chevy Chase, Md./Georgetown Prep) followed with five straight points on an old-fashioned three-point play and a layup, and then first-year guard Richie Manigault (Stewartsville, N.J./Phillipsburg) capped the spurt with a triple to push W&L's advantage to 56-43 with 5:33 left on the clock. The lead did not drop below nine points the rest of the way, as the Generals improved to 2-1.
 
The Blue and White drastically improved its shooting in the second half. After going 1-of-11 (9.1 percent) from long range in the opening period, the team made 40.0 percent (6-of-15) in the second. W&L shot just 40.9 percent (9-of-22) from the floor in the first, but connected on 16-of-29 (55.2 percent) of its shots in the second.
 
The Mariners made 48.0 percent (12-of-25) of their shots from the floor in the first, but the Blue and White defense held USMMA to just 8-of-28 (28.6 percent) from the field in the second frame.

Brueggeman led the team in scoring for the third straight contest with 18 points on 6-of-10 from the floor and 4-of-7 from beyond the arc. He also had seven rebounds. Mitchell totaled 11 points, four rebounds, four blocks and three steals, and Manigault added 10 points.
 
Junior guard James Walsh led the Mariners in scoring with 12 points, but also committed six turnovers. Sophomore forward Blaine McDonough contributed 11 points and five rebounds.
 
The Generals have their home and ODAC opener on Wednesday against 24th-ranked Randolph-Macon at 7:00 pm at the Duchossois Tennis Center.