Men's basketball falls in home finale faces rematch on Saturday

Photo by Wayne Gehman

First year center Corey Bailey takes the ball to the bucket. The men's basketball team will play in the ODAC tournament this Saturday in a rematch against second-seed Virginia Wesleyan.

Brandon Adair scored 27 points to lead four players in double figures for Virginia Wesleyan College in an 85-62 victory over Eastern Mennonite University in an Old Dominion Athletic Conference men's basketball game on Tuesday.

Virginia Wesleyan improved to 19-5 overall and 13-5 in the ODAC and secured the #2 seed in the ODAC Tournament. EMU fell to 12-12 overall and 8-10 in the ODAC and will be the #7 seed, meaning the two teams will have a rematch on Saturday at 6 p.m. in the tournament quarterfinals in Salem, Va.

Virginia Wesleyan led 20-16 halfway through the first half and 30-19 at the 5:48 mark. EMU pulled to within nine at 32-23 with 4:11 remaining before the Marlins pulled away. Adair scored eight points, freshman forward Tyler Fantin six, and freshman guard Ton Ton Balegna added a three-pointer as part of a 17-7 run for a 49-30 halftime lead.

The visitors led 52-32 at the 18:30 mark of the second half before EMU started to fight back. The Royals cut it to 52-43 at the 13:29 mark with an 11-0 run. The Marlins went up 59-45 before the Royals pushed back to a 63-55 deficit with 9:08 remaining. However, the EMU comeback attempt ran out of gas as VWC went on a 14-2 run to take a 77-57 lead with 3:37 remaining. The Marlins went on for the lopsided 85-62 victory.

Adair, a sophomore forward, finished with 27 points, three rebounds, four assists, and three steals for the Marlins. Balegna had 14 points, three boards, and two steals. Fantin finished with 11 points and three boards while senior forward Peter Warren added 12 points and three assists.

The Marlins shot 59.6% from the floor, the best by any team against the Royals this season. They also went 8-for-13 beyond the three-point arch, the second best percentage by an EMU opponent this season. VWC made 15-of-19 free throw for 78.9% accuracy.

Sophomore forward Jason Sager led EMU with 25 points and also had five rebounds and three assists. Sophomore center Jason Lentz added 13 points, seven rebounds, and four blocks. Freshman guard Brad Parkes finished with 11 points and five rebounds.

EMU shot just 41.2% from the floor and made 3-of-10 three-point field goal attempts. The Royals went 17-of-22 at the free throw line. EMU led VWC in rebounds 31-28 but committed 20 turnovers, including 10 in the game's first 10 minutes.

On Saturday in the ODAC Tournament, #3 Bridgewater will square off with #6 Guilford at 8 p.m. In afternoon games, #1 Randolph-Macon will face #8 Lynchburg at 1 p.m., and #4 Hampden-Sydney will battle #5 Roanoke at 3 p.m.