November 20, 2008
BOX SCORE
MORGANTOWN, W.Va. – Longwood University dropped an 86-54 men's basketball decision on the road at West Virginia University Thursday night during a first-round game of the Findlay Toyota/Las Vegas Invitational in Morgantown, West Virginia. The Lancers (2-2) were led by redshirt-junior Dana Smith/Woodbridge (C.D. Hylton) with a game-high 17 points. The Mountaineers (2-0) of the BIG EAST Conference were led by Darryl Bryant with 16 points off the bench. Longwood will play again on Saturday, November 22, at the University of Maryland-Eastern Shore in Princess Anne, Maryland at 7 p.m..
Longwood and West Virginia each started slowly in the whistle-prone contest as the Lancers only trailed 17-10 with 7:48 left in the first half after a jumper from senior Ryan Bogan/Oxford, Pa. (Harcum JC). The Mountaineers, however, closed the opening period with a 26-9 run to take control and lead 43-19 at the intermission. LU was able to close to within 51-28 with 17:10 remaining on a jumper from Smith but WVU used a 12-3 run to lead 63-31 at 11:23. The hosts maintained the margin the rest of the way as the two teams combined to shoot 40 free throws in the second half alone.
Smith finished with a game-high 17 points, adding four rebounds to lead Longwood. Bogan had 11 points and a career-high six assists, while sophomore Jeffrey Ryan/Beacon, N.Y. (Newburgh Free Academy) added a career-high nine points off the bench for the Lancers. Classmate Brandon Evans/Roanoke (Roanoke Catholic) contributed five points, four rebounds, and three blocks in nine minutes. LU shot 30% (17-56) from the field, including 20% (3-15) on three-point field goals, and 81% (17-21) at the free throw line.
Bryant finished with 16 points off the bench to lead West Virginia. Da'Sean Butler and Alex Ruoff each had 12 points for the Mountaineers. WVU shot 46% (26-56) from the field, including 29% (5-17) on three-pointers, and 66% (29-44) at the line. It was the first-ever meeting between Longwood and West Virginia in the sport of men's basketball.
Following the UMES game on Saturday night, Longwood will play its second-round game of the Findlay Toyota/Las Vegas Invitational on Monday, November 24, at the University of Kentucky in Lexington at venerable Rupp Arena at 7 p.m..
