The University of Maryland Eastern Shore men’s basketball team could not keep up with the breakneck pace of the #15 ranked VCU Rams in Richmond, Va. on Thursday night. Playing for the second consecutive night, the Hawks failed to slow down the offensive onslaught from Virginia Commonwealth with a final score of 106-66.
A night after defeating Mount St. Mary’s for the first win of the Bobby Collins era, UMES had to regroup to face one of the top teams in the nation. VCU jumped all over the Hawks in the opening minutes, scoring the game’s first 18 points before UMES finally got on the board with a Devin Martin three-pointer. The Rams made 10 of their first 11 shots on the night as the relentless full-court pressure paid dividends with quick open shots.
By halftime, VCU opened up a 61-30 advantage by shooting 61.1% from the floor and forcing ten turnovers, including nine steals. The Rams made 10 of 16 three-point attempts in the first half, as the VCU offense put on an impressive display. The Hawks did their best to keep pace, shooting 40.0% as a squad, a good mark but well below VCU’s output.
In the second half, the Rams cooled off slightly, but not nearly enough to allow for a Hawks’ comeback. VCU had 13 different players get into the scorebook, including five players with double digits, led by freshman Terry Larrier with 21 points. Even though the Hawks’ defense could not limit the damage, there were encouraging signs from the offense.
UMES senior guard Devon Walker caught fire, hitting seven three pointers on the evening, accounting for all 21 of his points. Meanwhile, junior Devin Martin constantly attacked the defense, creating offense by getting to the foul line. Martin finished the night with 20 points, including a perfect 11-for-11 on free throws. The team posted a 38.3% shooting percentage, much improved from their losses at Virginia Tech and Villanova. From the free throw line, the Hawks made considerable strides, shooting 78.6% as a team, up from 55.7% in their first three games combined.
With two losses to ranked opponents in the past four nights, UMES has navigated through its toughest stretch of the non-conference schedule. The Hawks are halfway done their current eight-game road trip, which picks up on Saturday against St. Francis (Pa.).
Courtesy of UMES Sports Information
SAVANNAH, GA— Savannah State’s Terel Hall’s three-point play with one second to play gave Savannah State a 59-58 victory over Winthrop, Thursday evening at Tiger Arena.
The loss is the first of the season for the Eagles as they fall to 2-1 and will return home for their next two games starting with East Tennessee State on Monday, Nov. 24 at 7 p.m. at the Winthrop Coliseum.
Winthrop’s Andre Smith had two free throws with seven seconds to play for a three or four point advantage, but the career 77 percent free throw shooter couldn’t get either to drop and Hall took advantage. Hall drove the lane and threw up a shot as he was fouled to tie the game and made the free throw, despite the Tigers being 4-for-11 at the line before Hall knocked his down.
“We said going in we really had to take care of the ball and limit our turnovers and we had 19 of them,” said Winthrop head coach Pat Kelsey. “A whole bunch of them were unforced and plays we typically make. You have to tip your cap to Savannah State, they found a way. The imposed their will and their style on us instead of vice versa. That’s a credit to them, to their coach and to their players.”
It looked as though the Eagles were in trouble with 2:42 to play as the Eagles defended the half court well for the duration of the shot clock, but as the last two seconds were winding down, Hall launched up a deep three that banked in for a 56-50 lead.
Winthrop then reeled off eight straight points for a 58-56 lead with 18 seconds to play in the game. Andre Smith hit a three-pointer to pull Winthrop within one point and then Josh Davenport took over the offensive glass and hit 3-of-4 at the line for a 58-56 lead. Off the inbound play for the Tigers, Winthrop got the defensive play it needed as Smith came up with the steal as he was fouled with seven seconds to play, but his two misses at the line allowed Savannah State the opportunity to tie the game or take the lead and Hall made a play.
Winthrop had led 45-41 with 9:52 remaining but neither team scored for the next two minutes before the Tigers scored four points on back-to-back possessions to tie the game with 7:25 to play. An Alante Fenner lay-up inside put the Tigers back on top 47-45 but Moore came right back with a layup to tie the game. After Savannah State tied the game at 45-45 with 7:25 to play, the lead changed hands five times and the score was tied three times the rest of the way.
Moore finished with a game-high 20 points as he also had four rebounds, two assists and two steals. It was his second 20-point game of the season. Smith was the only other Eagle in double-figures with 12 points as he was 4-for-6 from three.
Courtesy of winthropeagles.com
