HAMPDEN-SYDNEY, VA – Hampden-Sydney Basketball used several big runs in the second half to pull away for a 75-57 non-conference win against William Peace University on Sunday afternoon. H-SC improved to 9-2 while the Pacers dropped to 4-7.

It was a tight game throughout much of the first half with Hampden-Sydney holding a 19-15 advantage with 7:48 left. H-SC then scored the next nine to go ahead by 13, 28-15, at 4:37. The Pacers didn't back down, scoring eight of the next nine to trim the deficit to just six, 29-23, with 2:07 remaining before intermission. Mike Murray (Norfolk, VA / Norfolk Christian) drained a three pointer on the next possession, and following a defensive stop, Jake Duncan (Williamsburg, VA / Williamsburg Christian) found  Guilherme Guimarães (Ribeirão Preto, Brazil / Miller School (VA)) coming in from the right wing for a lob dunk at 1:07 to put Hampden-Sydney up 34-23 going into halftime.

Hampden-Sydney came out strong to start the second half. The Tigers scored three of the first four baskets to go up by 15 and forcing a Pacers timeout. Strother scored a jumper coming out of the timeout and then forced a Tigers turnover and called another timeout. Murray picked the pocket of Terry Rogers two seconds later and scored a fastbreak layup. Leon Hargrove (Raleigh, NC / Middle Creek) stole the ball on the next two Pacer possessions and turned both into slam dunks. H-SC then recorded their fourth straight steal, converting it into a Duncan layup to put the Tigers on top by 21, 48-27, with 15:32 remaining.

H-SC went on to lead by as many as 23, but William Peace stormed back, going on a 25-9 run over seven minutes to trail by just seven with 7:24 remaining. H-SC quickly went back up by double digits on a Murray layup and a Guimarães three-point play, but Ryan Emfinger connected on a three to keep the game within single digits at 64-55 at the 5:22 mark. Murray responded with a traditional three-point play, pulled up for an NBA-range trifecta with the shot clock about to expire, and Guimarães added in a tip-in and a free throw for the and-one, putting the Tigers up by 18, 73-55, and making the game effectively out of reach with 2:21 left.

Guimarães posted the first double-double of his career with 14 points and 12 rebounds as he made six of his eight field goal attempts. Murray posted a full line with 19 points, seven assists, six steals, and four rebounds. He converted 7-of-11 shots while going 2-for-2 from three and 3-3 from the foul line. Hargrove tallied 12 points, four rebounds, and three steals while going 6-of-9 from the field. Duncan contributed seven points and four assists while Greg Lewis (Mechanicsville, VA / Hanover) added on nine points and two steals.

Nate Strother led the Pacers with 17 points off the bench while Chris Thomas chipped in with 12. Shawn Shaffer fell just shy of a double-double with 13 points and nine boards.

The Tigers shot 48.3% for the game while limiting the Pacers to a 40.8% output. Each team shot over 40% from the three point line, but William Peace could not capitalize on their team strength, making nine while H-SC drained eight. Turnovers proved to be the major difference as the Pacers had 18 giveaways with 13 coming via H-SC steals. Hampden-Sydney was lethal off turnovers, converting those 18 turnovers into 29 points while William Peace had nine off just 10 H-SC turnovers.

Hampden-Sydney gets into the heart of the ODAC schedule this Wednesday when Randolph College comes to the Hill for a 7 pm game.