College Men’s Basketball Final – Guilford 79, Virginia Wesleyan 71

VIRGINIA BEACH, Va. – Marcus Curry (Greensboro, N.C./Northern Guilford (Bridgewater)) scored 13 of his game-high 21 points in the second half of Guilford College’s 79-71 Old Dominion Athletic Conference (ODAC) basketball win at Virginia Wesleyan University Saturday. Curry added eight rebounds and six assists in the Quakers’ (9-8, 5-3 ODAC) fourth win in five games.

Carson Long (Pilot Mountain, N.C./East Surry) added a double-double with 13 points and 12 rebounds for Guilford. His three-pointer with 3:16 left in regulation extended Guilford’s lead to 74-68, one possession after Percy Burt knocked down his second straight trey for the Marlins (10-7, 4-4 ODAC). Long’s basket started an important 7-0 Guilford run over a 95-second span that gave the guests a 78-68 margin with 1:41 remaining. The Quakers held Virginia Wesleyan to 10 points in the final 10:14 of the contest, including three in the final 3:40 of regulation.

The Quakers’ Will Leckonby (Salisbury, N.C./Salisbury) dropped in 14 of his career-high 16 points in the first half, 12 on four-of-six three-point shooting. He kept pace with Virginia Wesleyan’s R.J. Nicholson, who also made four trifectas on the way to 12 first-half points and a 41-41 halftime tie.

Alston Thompson (Durham, N.C./Durham Academy) also scored 16 points for Guilford, which committed just four turnovers. Kyler Gregory contributed nine points in 13 minutes off the bench and contributed to Guilford’s 30-4 edge in interior scoring.

Guilford adjusted its second-half defense to hold Nicholson to four second-half points. He shared team-high scoring honors with Burt, who made all five three-pointers as part of his 16 points. Corey Pelham scored 12 points off the bench for the Marlins. Teammate Lamont Steward added 10 markers and eight rebounds. Virginia Wesleyan shot 17-for-33 from three-point range, but couldn’t convert down the stretch.