For Immediate Release December 8, 1999
Leftwich Leads Maroons to 86-75 Win
Maroons Close Out 1999 With Win Over Randolph-Macon, Improve to 7-1, 4-0
Roanoke vs Randolph-Macon Box Score
ASHLAND, VA--The Roanoke College men's basketball team used a 51-38 second half to defeat the Randolph-Macon College Yellow Jackets, 86-75, in Ashland, VA on Wednesday night. The Maroons, who trailed in the Old Dominion Athletic Conference contest at the break by two points (37-35) improve to 7-1 on the season and 4-0 in league action. The Yellow Jackets, under the guidance of first year head coach Mike Rhoades, fall to 3-2 on the year and 1-1 against conference teams. The Roanoke defense proved to be the difference in the game, as it forced the young and inexperienced Yellow Jackets into 29 turnovers and came up with 15 steals. The Maroons used a full court press for most of the game, a press that Macon, which had just three upperclassmen on the roster, had trouble with.
Roanoke got out to a very fast start, jumping out to a 12-0 lead in the first three minutes of the game. The lead was short lived, however, as Randolph-Macon battled it way back, going on a 20-6 run to take the lead a 20-18 with 9:37 left in the opening half. RMC extended its advantage out to as much as six points in the half, but a layup by Colby Leftwich (Roanoke, VA/Patrick Henry) with just five ticks left on the clock cut the RMC lead to two at the break.
After being out rebounded 18-7 in the first half, Roanoke hit the boards much harder in the opening stages of the second frame, enabling them to regain the lead (39-37) with just 46 second elapsed in the stanza. The Maroons held onto that lead for the rest of the game leading by as much as 15 points during the half. The Maroons have now outscored their conference opponents, 180-121 in the second half of games this season.
Leftwich finished the game with a career-high 20 points, eclipsing his old best of 14 which he set against Savannah A&D earlier this season. The team's leading three-point artist this season, senior Paris Butler (Springfield, VA/West Springfield) tossed in a season-high 16 points, hitting three three-pointers in the contest. Jaimar Mansel (Akron, OH/St. Vincent-St. Mary) came off the bench to score seven points for the Maroons, and adding two steals and two assists.
All four of Roanoke's starters reached double-figures in the scoring column. In addition to Leftwich and Butler, Brad Dunleavy (Roanoke, VA/William Fleming) had 12, Alex Phillips (Roanoke, VA/Cave Spring) 10, and Jason Strickland (Charlottesville, VA/Covenant) 14. Dunleavy also added a game-high six assists, pushing his squad best to 31 this season. Strickland's five steals pushed his season total to 31.
The win marked the 185th in the head coaching career of Roanoke's Page Moir, whose career mark now stands at 185-91.
This was the last game for the Maroons in 1999. They return to action on January 4th as they play in the Domino's Lewis-Gale Classic at Roanoke. The tournament, which annually raises money for the American Cancer Society and the V-Foundation, features the Maroons playing Lehman (NY) College, a game that will follow a match-up between Chowan and Worcester State. The game time for the first game is slated for 2:00 pm, with the Roanoke game to follow at 4:00. The game times were originally 5:30 and 7:30, but were moved because of the Sugar Bowl.