College Men’s Basketball Final – Guilford 71, Washington and Lee 68 (OT)

GREENSBORO, N.C. – Dominique Henderson’s (Charlotte, N.C./Mallard Creek (Catawba)) jumper with 1:36 left in overtime lifted Guilford College to a 71-68 Old Dominion Athletic Conference (ODAC) men’s basketball victory over visiting Washington and Lee University Saturday afternoon.

The Generals (10-8, 3-6 ODAC) erased a nine-point second-half deficit and forced the extra frame on Andy Kleinlein’s three-pointer with 12 seconds left in regulation. The Quakers did not call timeout on the ensuing play and Jarrod Rogers’ (Archdale, N.C./Trinity) potential game-winner with five ticks left fell off the mark.

Guilford (11-7, 6-3 ODAC) fell behind, 66-64, in overtime after two free throws apiece by Clayton Murtha and Devin Kearns. The Quakers’ defense did not allow a Washington and Lee field goal, however, until a Kearns layup with 14 seconds remaining. Alston Thompson (Durham, N.C./Durham Academy) and Henderson scored on back-to-back possessions midway through overtime to give Guilford the lead for good.

After Henderson’s go-ahead bucket, Washington and Lee missed two three-pointers sandwiched around two missed free throws by Thompson. The Generals sent Guilford’s Zachary Houston (Hickory, N.C./St. Stephen’s) to the line with 47 seconds left, but he missed both shots. Thompson rebounded Houston’s second miss and the Generals later quickly fouled Houston again. This time, the junior captain made both shots with 31 seconds left, which opened a 70-66 edge.

Kearns’ layup with 14 seconds left made it a two-point game once again. Guilford’s Justen Best (Chapel Hill, N.C./East Chapel Hill (Tennessee Temple)) made one of two free throws with nine seconds remaining, which provided the final margin. Washington and Lee did not get a shot off on its final possession.

Guilford’s Trever Hyatt (Hickory, N.C./East Burke) paced four Quakers in double-figure scoring with 14 points in 18 minutes off the bench. Henderson finished with a career-high 13 points and teammate Will Freeman chipped in 12. Thompson notched his third double-double of the season with 10 points and a game-best 11 rebounds. He also made three steals. Hyatt, Freeman and Thompson helped Guilford own a 40-10 edge in bench scoring and a 28-12 interior scoring advantage. Houston finished with seven points, eight rebounds, a game-high six assists and a steal. He played all 45 minutes.

Washington and Lee’s Kearns led all scorers with 24 points, 15 in the first half. He and Kleinlein both made three three-pointers. Kleinlein and Murtha scored 10 points apiece. Murtha’s eight boards topped the Generals.

Coach Tom Palombo’s Quakers host Roanoke College Wednesday (2/3) at 7:00 p.m. The Maroons slipped into second place in the ODAC standings Saturday after a 73-72 home loss to Virginia Wesleyan College in a showdown for first place in the league.

Washington and Lee vs Guilford
01/30/16 2:00 p.m. at Greensboro, NC – Ragan-Brown Field House

GUILFORD 71
WASHINGTON AND LEE 68

WASHINGTON AND LEE (10-8, 3-6 ODAC): Devin Kearns 8-17 5-6 24; Andy Kleinlein 3-8 1-2 10; Clayton Murtha 3-3 4-7 10; Nicholas George 2-6 2-2 7; Andrew Franz 1-5 5-5 7; Alex Starr 1-2 2-2 5; Roy McMillan 1-3 0-0 3; Stephen Himmelberg 0-0 2-4 2; Jim Etling 0-1 0-0 0; Joe Sherwood 0-0 0-0 0; Jok Asiyo 0-2 0-1 0; Michael Hegar 0-0 0-0 0. Totals 19-47 21-29 68.

GUILFORD (11-7, 6-3 ODAC): HYATT, Trever 5-12 2-2 14; HENDERSON, Dominique 4-10 3-4 13; FREEMAN, Will
4-10 4-7 12; THOMPSON, Alston 4-6 2-5 10; LONG, Carson 3-5 0-0 8; HOUSTON, Zachary 2-3 2-5 7; ROGERS, Jarrod 0-3 4-4 4; BRYANT, John 1-4 0-0 2; BEST, Justen 0-5 1-2 1; METZ, AJ 0-1 0-2 0. Totals 23-59 18-31 71.

Washington and Lee............   25   37    6  -   68
Guilford......................   31   31    9  -   71

3-point goals–Washington and Lee 9-26 (Devin Kearns 3-10; Andy Kleinlein 3-4; Nicholas George 1-4; Alex Starr 1-2; Roy McMillan 1-2; Jim Etling 0-1; Andrew Franz 0-3), Guilford 7-20 (LONG, Carson 2-4; HENDERSON, Dominique 2-4; HYATT, Trever 2-8; HOUSTON, Zachary 1-2; BEST, Justen 0-1; ROGERS, Jarrod 0-1).
Fouled out–Washington and Lee-Roy McMillan; Nicholas George, Guilford-None.
Rebounds–Washington and Lee 32 (Clayton Murtha 8), Guilford 40 (THOMPSON, Alston 11).
Assists–Washington and Lee 9 (Andrew Franz 3; Devin Kearns 3), Guilford 14 (ROGERS, Jarrod 6; HOUSTON, Zachary 6).
Total fouls–Washington and Lee 23, Guilford 23.
Technical fouls–Washington and Lee-None, Guilford-None.
A-515
Old Dominion Athletic Conference game