Seven Net Double-Digits, Men’s Basketball Blasts North Carolina In Rowdy Home-Opener
Quakers complete sweep of USA South’s best behind 53 points from the bench
from Bryce Johnson, Director of Athletic Communications
GREENSBORO, N.C. – Receiving double-digit scoring contributions from seven different men, the Guilford College men’s basketball team (2-0, 0-0 ODAC) treated the rambunctious crowd at Jack Jensen Court in the Ragan-Brown Field House to a show and a 106-84 home-opening victory over North Carolina Wesleyan University (1-2, 0-0 USA South) on Wednesday night.
Eclipsing the century mark again, Guilford nets 100-plus in their first-two games of the season for the first time since the 1969-70, and they did so with terrific balance, evenly splitting their 106 points between their starters and reserves, with 53 per squad while NCWU got just 24 from their second unit. After shooting over 45% twice in all of 2025-26, GC has done so in each of their first-two games, hitting at a .476 mark that included an 11-of-33 showing from range. Their guests shot just .448 and 4-for-16 from deep, taking 17 fewer shots due to GC grabbing 24 offensive boards to their 18 and a 22-14 turnover disparity.
It was the newest Quakers who contributed the most in the box score as Oliver Jones (Middletown, Del.) finished with a team-high 17 points on 7-of-17 alongside five steals. Andrew Schall (Apex, N.C.) contributed an efficient 15 tallies on 6-for-8 shooting and 3-of-5 from three. Reynolds Escher (Atlanta, Ga.) had 14 points on 7-for-10 to go with a team and career-high six assists. Braylen Salters (Cleveland, Ohio) got to enjoy a more complimentary role with 14 points, four assists, four rebounds, three steals, and a block. Ryder Randolph (Fuquay-Varina, N.C.) scored a dozen with seven boards and both Tyson Garner (Cleveland, Ohio) and Davionta Moses (Winston-Salem, N.C.) made over half their shots to score 10 each. Tripp McMillen (Dobson, N.C.) finished tied for the game-high with eight caroms.
Markquan Gilbert paced all players with 20 points on 8-for-13 to go with seven rebounds and Rashod Smith had 18 tallies and a game-high eight helpers. Omari Bolden rounded out double-digit scorers with a dozen and Marvin Tucker Jr. had a team-high eight boards.
While it would not sustain, NCWU actually scored six of the game’s first eight points to grab an early advantage, but Guilford’s half-court defense was strong early, allowing them to draw even at six before the first media timeout, and they would never trail again. Trading three-points for twos by their guest, GC benefitted from makes from range by Jones and Schall then five-straight by Randolph, including an and-one to build out a seven-point lead. It would hover in that two-to-three possession range for a bit before the Battling Bishops made their run, tallying seven unanswered to cut it to one. Escher settled things, though, making a floater then taking a charge on the other end, prompting a 12-2 stretch to get the lead to double-digits and while it ducked under a couple times, GC lead 49-38 at the break.
The lead would continue to alternate in-and-out of double-digits for a while in the second half, but it also never got inside three possessions until Guilford made it a blowout in the middle-portion of the stanza. Jones made a two then picked Jamie Dance’s pocket and fed an emphatic poster dunk by Salters. After a timeout and a two by NCWU, Moses and Salters hit threes and Garner got the steal and the slam to punctuate a 12-2 stretch. After the guests got back within 16, GC rattled off 13-straight on a Salters fourth-chance three, Jones floater, Moses triple, Jones steal to an and-one, and an Escher two, widening the lead to as much as 29, and it only briefly got under 20 the rest of the way, as Guilford finished the 106-84 win.
Guilford is home again on Saturday, November 14 when they host Southern Virginia University for a non-conference clash starting at 3:00 PM.
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