Belhaven Outlasts (RV) Men’s Basketball In Springhill Suites Guilford Holiday Classic Finale
Farrar leads all players in scoring despite defeat
from Bryce Johnson, Director of Athletic Communications
GREENSBORO, N.C. – The nationally receiving-votes Guilford College men’s basketball team, concluded the 2024 edition of the Springhill Suites Guilford College Holiday Classic, falling in a physical affair to Belhaven University, 54-51 on Monday afternoon on Jack Jensen Court inside the Ragan-Brown FieldHouse.
The loss, which is the Quakers first in the Holiday Classic since the 2005 event, drops the hosts to 8-3 overall at the conclusion of 2024. The Blazers pick up a big win, improving to 8-3 on the year.
Both teams posted season-low scoring outputs, but Belhaven used Guilford’s biggest strength against them, ambushing the offensive glass to the tune of 17 offensive rebounds resulting in a 20-5 advantage in second-chance points. Neither team shot the ball particularly well, with GC finishing with a .370 field goal percentage and the Blazers finishing at .327, but BU made nine threes against five for the Quakers. Despite all this, the home team had a really good chance to win the game and ultimately their undoing would be at the charity stripe where they made just 6-of-15.
Nick Farrar (Apex, N.C.) finished by leading all players in scoring with 19 points on 8-for-13 shooting, but just 2-for-6 from the line. He also led the Quakers with seven rebounds. Farrar was the only GC player to score double-figures on the night although Caleb Furr (Warrenton, Va.) completed a superb Holiday Classic with nine points on 4-of-8 shooting in reserve. Luke Proctor (Apex, N.C.) led all players with six helpers.
Jacob Reese headlines the visitor’s performances, scoring 11 points on 3-for-7 but with 16 rebounds including nine on the offensive end. DeMarcus Powe led the Blazers scoring 13 points while distributing a team-high 4 assists. Jermario Hersey was their third-leading scorer with eight points on the day.
The game would be like a heavyweight bout right from the opening tip. Tough, physical, and gritty. Guilford got the first six points, all of them from Farrar, on layups, two coming off Proctor feeds, then Belhaven counterpunched with seven-straight after Jonathan Lucas finally broke their scoreless spell with a couple free throws. Chase Ellis (Douglasville, Ga.) buried a three just ahead of the under-14 break, giving GC a 9-7 edge early.
The Quakers maintained their lead and extended it out to 15-10 before Belhaven got their top scoring run of the game, connecting from distance on three-straight possessions from Jordan Williams and then twice from Powe. The 9-0 explosion brought the game to the under-seven with the score 19-15. GC followed with an 8-2 spurt out of the break, claiming the advantage, but it would be Belhaven who would take the lead into the locker room at 26-25.
Guilford had every chance to pull away in the first half, shooting .344 against Belhaven’s .296 mark. However, the Blazers crashed the glass, converting ten offensive rebounds into a 12-2 edge on second chances, keeping them in the ballgame.
It felt like GC would seize control as they have so many times before out of halftime as Caleb Farrish (McLeansville, N.C.) first came away with a sloppy pass and threw down a steal-to-score dunk on the other end. Then later Farrar buryed a three, Farrish got another jam, and Proctor finished a layup for a 9-2 outburst. However, a credit to Belhaven, they countered with six-straight. The contest continued to be a punch-down, drag-out affair with it remaining within one possession, and the adversaries were even at 42 with seven to play.
Jumping ahead to the four-minute mark, the Quakers were up one after Farrish got a steal and Furr got a fastbreak score to make the score 46-45. Hersey cashed in a three, putting the Blazers up and GC, in the double-bonus, got four-straight free throws from Ellis and Farrish, but they missed all four in a sequence that truly ended up being pivotal. Reese got a steal-to-score with 2:05 left into a GC timeout. Two possessions later, despite struggling all night shooting the ball, Gabe Proctor (Apex, N.C.) hit a deep three from in front of the broadcasters at the scorers table, getting the hosts back in it with the crucial make cutting the deficit to one with a minute to play. However, Powe answered with a mid-range jumper and each squad got two free throw makes down the stretch. Farrar got a good look from the corner to tie the game with six seconds to play, but he could not make it. Neal Terry got the loose ball and inexplicably and prematurely basically threw the ball at the rim on the other end from three-quarters court. His heave rimmed out but he chased down his own rebound and was fouled in a chaotic sequence. He missed his free throw giving the Quakers the chance for a prayer, but they could not complete the full-court pass, falling 54-51.
Belhaven made just nine shots in the second half, but five of them were from three. Ultimately, the biggest difference ended up being GC going just 5-of-12 from the stripe including a 0-of-5 stretch with the game hanging in the balance.
Guilford will hit the floor again in 2025, returning to league play and visiting Ferrum College on Saturday, January 4th at 2:00 PM.
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