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FARMVILLE, Va. – Last season, Longwood forward Khris Lane may have been the best kept secret in the Big South.
 
Just one game into the 2015-16 campaign, the secret is out.
 
Playing in his first regular season game for the Lancers (1-0), the 6-6, 225-pound transfer from Drexel exploded for 20 rebounds and 16 points and teamed with 22-point scorer Kanayo Obi-Rapu to orchestrate a 69-49 season-opening win over Randolph Friday night in Willett Hall.
 
Lane's breakout performance came after he spent the entire 2014-15 season on Longwood's bench due to NCAA transfer rules. The Richmond, Va., native made up for that lost time Friday, corralling nearly half of Longwood's rebounds, including eight on the offensive glass, to put together only the second 20-rebound game of Longwood's Division I era.
 
"I've worked my butt off," said a smiling Lane, whose 20 boards matched Antwan Carter's Division I single-game school record set on Feb. 24, 2011.
 
"The biggest thing is I just wanted to contribute. Coach Gee has just had a lot faith in me. He's given me the keys, and as long as I play hard and play defense, he's letting me do whatever I want."
 
Lane did whatever he wanted against the WildCats (0-1), nearing a double-double in the first half alone.  He scored eight points with nine boards in the opening frame and followed with eight more points and 11 rebounds in the second half. Seven of his offensive boards came in the second half and led directly to six second-chance points, including two putbacks of his own.
 
Obi-Rapu and junior Darrion Allen fed off that energy and both scored in double figures to lead the charge from the backcourt. Obi-Rapu was the catalyst from beyond the arc, hitting a career-high six three-pointers on the way to his first career 20-point game and career highs in made field goals (8), three-point field goals and minutes (33).
 
Allen, meanwhile, built off his 15-point, 11-rebound performance in the preseason exhibition win against Hampden-Sydney by filling the stat sheet with 12 points, five rebounds, four assists, four steals and a block. He was a perfect 7-of-7 from the free throw line and assisted on three of Obi-Rapu's three-pointers.
 
"I really think DJ [Allen] can be terrific for us," Gee said. "He can add a special spark and dimension to our team that only he can bring to the table. His defensive ability is impressive. One of the things we talked about was not giving anybody 20 points in our gym anymore, and he took pride in doing that."
 
The Allen-led defensive turnaround rectified a narrow three-point win against Hampden-Sydney this past Saturday in which Tiger sharpshooter and NJIT transfer Jake Duncan lit up the Lancers for 28 points on eight three-pointers. Longwood bounced back to hold all 17 Randolph players in single digits and the WildCats to just 30.2 percent shooting from the field as a team.
 
"Coach just really wanted us to work on getting better," said Lane. "We knew that team wasn't going to be as talented as we are, but we wanted to come out and work on our stuff and not be lackadaisical just because we were a better team. That's why even when we were up 20, we were still pressuring."
 
Longwood rode that pressure defense to the 20-point win despite rotating just eight players, including three guards off the bench. Redshirt freshman Bryan Gee once again took primary point guard duties and racked up five assists to just two turnovers in 29 minutes, but he got some help with the return of redshirt senior Tra'Vaughn White. White, who missed Saturday's preseason exhibition with a toe injury, scored five points in a limited 15 minutes of action.
 
"Any time you can respond when you have guys down, that's resiliency," Gee said. "We have guys down and other guys get the opportunity to step up. Nobody's doing that better than DJ Allen. I'm really, really proud of him. For him to have a line like he did, that's impressive for him and two back-to-back consistent games. We need to use these games to build his confidence because we have some coming up that are going to be really challenging. We need him ready for that."
 
Those upcoming games pit Longwood against La Roche at home Monday, Nov. 16, before the start of a six-game road swing that begins at the Eastern Kentucky Hoops Classic in Richmond, Ky. Across a three-day span at the tournament, Longwood will take on South Carolina State, Ball State and Eastern Kentucky on Nov. 20-22.
 
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