HAMPDEN-YDNEY, VA – The #18 Virginia Wesleyan College Marlins came back from a seven-point halftime deficit to defeat Hampden-Sydney Basketball 79-73.

Virginia Wesleyan held a slim 7-6 lead four minutes in, but H-SC roared ahead 20-11 at the 9:20 mark behind a 14-4 run highlighted by seven Mitch Owens (Williamsburg, VA / Walsingham) points. The big lead didn't last long as the Marlins drained three pointers on three consecutive possessions in just over a minute to tie the game at 20-20 and would go on a 16-0 run in just a little over three minutes of time to go up 27-20 with 5:28 left in the half.

H-SC stopped the bleeding shortly afterwards and scored nine of the next 12 points as two Leon Hargrove (Raleigh, NC / Middle Creek) free throws trimmed the deficit down to just one, 30-29, with 3:14 remaining. Trent Batson scored on the Marlins next possession to push the lead back up to three, but H-SC dominated the final three minutes, ending the half scoring the last 10 points to go into the half up 39-32.

H-SC picked up in the second half where it let off in the first with back-to-back Khobi Williamson (Norfolk, VA / Maury) layups to lead 43-32 just 1:45 in, forcing Marlins Head Coach Dave Macedo to call an early timeout. The timeout proved to be a wise decision as Virginia Wesleyan recorded eight straight points to trail just 43-40 at 16:28. Mike Murray (Norfolk, VA / Norfolk Christian) made a layup to put H-SC back up five, but three consecutive Marlins two-point baskets gave Virginia Wesleyan their first lead of the stanza, 46-45, at the 14-minute mark. Owens briefly regained a 50-49 lead for Hampden-Sydney following a three-point jumper at 12:09, but Virginia Wesleyan showed their spurtability once again, going on a 9-2 run to go ahead 58-52 with 9:07 to go.

The Tigers gradually chipped away at the lead and tied the game at 69-69 behind a Murray layup with 2:37 left in the contest. H-SC eventually secured the defensive rebound on the Marlins next possession, and a rebounding foul on Cameron Owens put Fletcher Lumpkin (Richmond, VA / Mills Godwin) at the foul line with a chance to put the Tigers ahead. Lumpkin made both shots to go up 71-69 at 2:18, but Owens made up for the foul with a layup to tie the game at 1:52.

Colby Heard fouled Williamson while he was fighting for post position, and Williamson made both shots from the charity stripe to give Hampden-Sydney a 73-71 lead with 1:43 left. Owens came up big again and canned a three from the right wing and got a defensive rebound off a Stephen Vassor (Roanoke Rapids, NC / Brunswick) missed jumpshot with 56 ticks left. Following a Marlins timeout, DJ Woodmore knocked down a pull up jumper to give the visitors a 76-73 advantage with 21 seconds left.

Lumpkin turned over the ball on the inbounds pass and the Tigers were forced to foul immediately. Woodmore missed the front end of the one-and-one free throw, but Aaron Clark grabbed the offensive rebound and was sent to the line with 10 seconds to go. Clark made both free throws to clinch the win.

Williamson scored 16 points with nine rebounds, three assists, and three blocks. He had a perfect shooting night, going 6-for-6 from the floor and 4-for-4 from the free throw line. Murray scored 11 of his 16 points in the second half and also added on four steals. Owens contributed 13 points in 15 minutes, and JaVonte Reddick (Richmond, VA / L.C. Bird) added on 10 points.

Woodmore was hot all game long, scoring 21 points while making 8-of-14 shots and 5-of-9 from deep. He also posted five rebounds and four assists. Clark also filled up the net, scoring up 21 of his own courtesy of 6-of-9 shooting and a 5-8 performance from three. Owens tacked on 14 points.

The teams were nearly dead even in every statistical category, but the difference was the hot three-point shooting from the Marlins that helped make up for their 61.9% (13-21) performance from the free throw line. They shot a blistering 12-of-25 from deep range while Hampden-Sydney went 7-for-22.

Hampden-Sydney returns to Fleet Gymnasium on Saturday for a 2 pm contest against Shenandoah University.