January 20, 2007

BOX SCORE

FARMVILLE, Va. – Longwood University dropped a 65-59 men’s basketball decision to visiting Savannah State University Saturday afternoon in Willett Hall. The Tigers (8-14) led from start to finish as Javon Randolph scored a game-high 24 points off the bench. The host Lancers (6-15) were led by senior Clayton Morgan/Brooklyn, N.Y. (Fashion Institute) with 18 points. Longwood will play again on Monday, January 22, hosting Hampton University in Willett Hall beginning at 7 p.m..

Savannah State scored the first six points of the game as Longwood did not score until 3:44 into the contest (6-2, 16:16). The Lancers closed to within 12-10 at 8:43 on a pair of free throws by freshman Kevin Swecker/Manchester, Md. (Mount Saint Joseph). The Tigers extended their lead again to 20-14 at 6:05 on a jumper from Joshua Obiajunwa before six-straight points by the hosts tied the contest at 20-20 with 3:54 left before halftime as Morgan scored four points inside. Randolph made a late three-pointer and added a last-second layup to give Savannah State a 29-26 lead at the intermission.

Longwood closed to within 29-28 at 17:09 as Morgan scored again inside before the Tigers took advantage of a 16-4 run to lead 45-32 with 10:53 remaining. The Lancers battled back to 49-40 at 6:23 on a jumper from junior Lamar Barrett/Providence, R.I. (St. Andrews) but Savannah State scored five unanswered points for its largest lead at 54-40 with 4:57 left. Longwood had one final run at the visitors, this a 19-9 outburst to bring the hosts within 63-59 at 0:54 as senior Maurice Sumter/Alexandria (T.C. Williams) tallied eight quick points -- beginning and ending the run with old-fashioned three-point plays near the basket. Joseph Flegler made a pair of free throws for the Tigers at 0:39 to close-out the scoring.

Morgan finished with 18 points to lead Longwood, including 12 points in the first half, adding five rebounds. Sumter added 16 points, nine rebounds, four assists, four steals, and two blocks while playing all 40 minutes. Barrett had 10 points, seven rebounds, three steals, and three blocks for the Lancers. LU shot 34% (18-53) from the field, including 15% (2-13) on three-point field goals, and 78% (21-27) at the free throw line. The hosts forced 25 turnovers by the visitors but were only able to convert them into 20 points.

Randolph finished with a game-high 24 points off the bench to lead Savannah State, including 13 points in the second half, though he also had six turnovers. Obiajunwa had a double-double of 14 points and a game-high 14 rebounds along with four assists. Flegler added 10 points for the Tigers. SSU shot 41% (19-46) from the field, including 60% (6-10) on three-pointers, and 88% (21-24) at the line. The visitors out-rebounded the hosts 34-30 while forcing 21 turnovers that were converted into 21 points.