LEXINGTON, Va. – Rebounding and points off turnovers proved to be the difference on Wednesday night, as the Washington and Lee men's basketball team dropped its first home game of the season, 79-54, against Virginia Wesleyan.
HOW IT HAPPENED:
- Despite shooting 50 percent over the first 12 and a half minutes, the Generals (10-2, 2-1 ODAC) found themselves down 29-18, as the Marlins (8-4, 3-0 ODAC) had made 12-of-22 shots from the field, with an early high of nine points from Omari Deveaux.
- W&L then made its next three shots, two from senior A.J. Thomas, to get back within five points with five minutes left in the half. The Marlins, however, responded with a half-ending 11-5 run to get it back to an 11-point game heading into the break.
- The Marlins opened the second half on a 9-0 run behind a trio of triples, before the Generals fought back with a 13-2 run across seven minutes of play with make it a 54-45 VWU lead with 10:30 left in regulation.
- For the rest of the game, the Marlins were paced by 13 points from Austin Smith, as they ended the night on a 25-9 run to pick up the win. They made eight of their final 15 shot attempts, while holding W&L to just 3-of-11 shooting.
TOP PERFORMERS:
- Sophomore Connor Amorosi scored a W&L-high 16 points on 6-of-13 shooting from the floor. Senior Colin Ryan followed with nine points and four assists, with Thomas next at eight points and seven rebounds.
- Deveaux led the way for the Marlins with 19 points and six rebounds. TJ East scored 15 and pulled in 11 rebounds for a double-double, while Malcolm Velmar had 14 points and made 3-of-7 three-point shots.
- Smith scored all 13 of his points late in the game, as he played 13 minutes total and made 4-of-6 field goal attempts.
TEAM STATS:
- The Generals shot 40.4 percent (19-47) from the field and made 11-of-15 (.733) free throws, while the Marlins connected on 44.3 percent (27-61) from the floor, 35.5 percent (11-31) from three and 14-of-20 (.700) foul shots.
- Virginia Wesleyan owned the rebounding battle at 43-24, which included a 17-5 margin in offensive boards and led to an 18-10 advantage in second-chance points.
- The Marlins' largest scoring discrepancy of the game came in points off turnovers, as they outscored the Blue and White 25-0. W&L turned the ball over 14 times to seven for VWU.
UP NEXT:
The Generals will return to action on Saturday when they travel to the Star City for a 2:00 p.m. opening tip-off against the 15th-ranked Maroons.
Nestled in the mountains of Virginia, Washington and Lee University is a proud member of NCAA Division III and the Old Dominion Athletic Conference. Founded in 1749, W&L is the ninth-oldest college in the United States and a top-ranked liberal arts university. With over 500 student-athletes in 24 varsity sports, the Generals have celebrated over 265 conference championships. Learn more about the Blue and White by visiting www.generalssports.com or on social media at @WLUGenerals.
