Posted: Jan 14, 2009
SALEM, Va. --- Roanoke College shot 57-percent from the field on Wednesday evening as the Maroons defeated Bridgewater College, 79-66, in ODAC men's basketball action on the C. Homer Bast Center. Roanoke improves to 14-1 overall, 6-0 in conference play. The Eagles fall to 7-8, 3-3.
The win also marked the team's 13th straight victory, matching the program's effort in the 1999-00 season and longest since a 22-game winning streak in 1993-94.
Strong shooting persisted throughout the night for the host squad. Roanoke made 16-of-27 field goals (59.3%) in the first half, and didn't fall far off with a 16-for-29 (55.2%) showing in the latter frame. The Maroons did struggle from behind the arc, connecting on only 4-of-17 (23.5%) from three-point territory, but they made up with a strong night elsewhere.
Parrish Walker led the squad in scoring for the second straight Wednesday, notching 19 points on 7-of-11 shooting including a pair of acrobatic jumpers. He added six rebounds and three assists to his stat sheet. Curtis Peery dropped in 17 markers to go with half-a-dozen boards and three more helpers. Melvin Felix also scored in double figures with 10 points.
Bridgewater, which shot 38.3-percent for the game, was led by 15 points from Robert Rice. Michael Oblitey added 14 points and six boards. Jordan Segar hauled in the most Eagle rebounds with seven.
The first half opened with seven ties as the teams wrestled for the lead for the first 10 minutes of the contest. Roanoke gradually pushed its way out to a five-point edge following a fast-break dunk from Walker. The advantage eventually grew to eight points with Drew Gaeng's three-pointer with 6:15 on the clock.
Bridgewater pared its deficit down to three points on several occasions, thanks to a three-pointer by Kris Cecil, a pair of lay-ups Oblitey, and a jumper by Robert Rice with 2:24 showing on the scoreboard.
Roanoke quickly regained its eight-point edge by the intermission. Peery dropped in a lay-up followed by another lay-in from Corey Poindexter to make the score 37-30. Peery added a foul shot with 0:06 to send the two squads to the locker rooms with Roanoke ahead, 38-30.
The Maroons extended their lead to 10 points over the first five minutes of the second half. Walker poured in eight of the RC's 14 points over that stretch as a 14-4 run made the score 52-34. The advantage increased to 21 points with a jumper by William Sheppard at the 12:39 mark, and again for a 62-41 lead on the second of two Peery free throws with 10:33 to play.
Roanoke's lead reached 23 points at two separate junctures. Walker completed a three-point play for a 69-46 score with 8:20 remaining, and Aaron Tyson tipped in a Walker miss a minute later to put RC ahead, 71-48.
Play steadied for the next several minutes as Roanoke enjoyed a lead that hovered between 15-18 points. Papa Fall put an exclamation point on the victory with his resounding block of a jumper into the stands that brought the crowd to a roar a half-minute before the final horn.
The men will host Washington & Lee on Saturday, January 17, at the Bast Center. Roanoke holds a 73-36 series advantage over the Generals and won the last contest, 76-66. Game time is scheduled for 7 p.m.
