College Men’s Basketball Final – Guilford 68, Methodist 66

GREENSBORO, N.C. – Matt McCarthy’s (Rockville, Md./Good Counsel) nine-foot running jumper in the lane with 1.7 seconds left in regulation lifted Guilford College to a 68-66 basketball win over visiting Methodist University Saturday afternoon. The junior’s second game-winning basket in three games moved Guilford’s record to 8-0 for the first time since 2006 and clinched the Quakers’ 13th straight men’s basketball win over the Monarchs (2-6).
Guilford is ranked 23rd in this week’s D3hoops.com Top 25 Poll.

Neither team led by more than five points during the tightly contested game, which featured eight lead changes and 12 ties.
The Quakers held a slim lead down the stretch before Keith Corbett’s pull-up jumper in the paint tied the score at 66 with 16 seconds to play. Guilford did not call time out, advanced into the frontcourt and put the ball into the hands of their leading scorer. McCarthy got the ball at the top of the key, drove the lane and dropped in the go-ahead shot from just inside the free-throw line.

The teams combined for four timeouts in the final two seconds, but Guilford’s defense prevented Methodist from taking a final shot before the buzzer.
McCarthy led all scorers with 21 points, 11 in the second half. He added nine rebounds and three steals in 32 minutes. Jake Hopkins (Kernersville, N.C./East Forsyth) turned in his second double-double of the season with 16 points and a career-high 16 rebounds, eight off the offensive glass. The senior forward helped the Quakers hold a 50-40 rebounding edge that included 20 offensive rebounds, leading to 39 second-chance points. Sophomore center Zeb Richardson (West Jefferson, N.C./Ashe County) scored eight of his nine points in the second half, all off of offensive rebounds. He finished with nine boards.

Methodist’s Bryan Hockaday tallied 15 points and a game-high 17 rebounds. The senior forward also blocked two shots in a strong game down low. The rest of his teammates combined to shoot less than 35 percent from the floor, including three-of-19 from three-point range. Tabias Hilliard added 11 points and a game-high seven assists. Desmond Parker chipped in with nine points and five rebounds.

Guilford visits North Carolina Wesleyan College Tuesday (12/17) at 3:00 p.m. in a nonleague game.

Methodist vs Guilford
12/14/13 3:00 p.m. at Greensboro, NC – Ragan-Brown Field House
At Greensboro, NC – Ragan-Brown Field House
GUILFORD 68
METHODIST 66

METHODIST (2-6): Bryan Hockaday 5-11 5-5 15; Tabias Hilliard 4-12 2-2 11; Desmond Parker 4-10 1-1 9; Brandon Monk 3-8 1-1 7; Keith Corbett 3-6 0-0 6; T.J. Gill 3-10 0-0 6; Keemon Ingram 2-11 0-0 6; Blake Davis 2-3 0-0 4; Joey Horne 1-1 0-0 2; Christian McRae 0-0 0-0 0; Chris Vinson 0-0 0-0 0. Totals 27-72 9-9 66.

GUILFORD (8-0): McCARTHY, Matt 9-20 1-4 21; HOPKINS, Jake 7-11 2-2 16; RICHARDSON, Zeb 4-12 1-2 9; HYATT, Trever 3-10 0-0 8; SPAINHOUR, Josh 2-3 1-2 5; FURR, Alston 1-8 2-2 4; HOUSTON, Zachary 1-2 0-1 2; STOKELY, Robbie 1-2 0-0 2; KOPPENHAVER, Will 0-2 1-2 1. Totals 28-70 8-15 68.

   Methodist.....................   32   34  -   66
   Guilford......................   31   37  -   68

3-point goals–Methodist 3-19 (Keemon Ingram 2-8; Tabias Hilliard 1-4; Brandon Monk 0-1; Keith Corbett 0-2; T.J. Gill 0-4), Guilford 4-18 (McCARTHY, Matt 2-9; HYATT, Trever 2-4; SPAINHOUR, Josh 0-1; FURR, Alston 0-3; HOPKINS, Jake 0-1).
Fouled out–Methodist-None, Guilford-None.
Rebounds–Methodist 40 (Bryan Hockaday 17), Guilford 50 (HOPKINS, Jake 16).
Assists–Methodist 13 (Tabias Hilliard 7), Guilford 13 (FURR, Alston 3).
Total fouls–Methodist 15, Guilford 10.
Technical fouls–Methodist-None, Guilford-None.
A-310

Nonconference game

Guilford is ranked 23rd in this week’s D3hoops.com Top 25 Poll.