Down by 15 points early in the second half, Virginia Wesleyan knew its chances in the Old Dominion Athletic Conference race were in peril. But to say the least, the Marlins responded, earning a 60-44 triumph at Eastern Mennonite in Harrisonburg.
The unranked Marlins (11-5, 6-1) hold first place by percentage points over the No. 5 team in Division III, Randolph-Macon, which they upset earlier this week. EMU led 36-21 early in the second half, but VWU outscored the Royals 39-8 thereafter.
Omari DeVeaux amassed 28 points and 10 rebounds for coach Dave Macedo’s Marlins. T.J. East and Demeir Pollard had eight points apiece. Aaron Brooks led the Royals (5-12, 2-6) with 12 points in a game that was scheduled for Saturday but was moved up because of the forecast.
High Point 93, Radford 83: Terry Anderson’s 31 points, 11 rebounds, five assists and three steals sparked the Panthers (18-4, 6-1 Big South) to a road victory. Braden Hausen scored 17 points while going 5 for 8 from 3-point range.
The Highlanders (11-11, 4-3) were led by Del Jones, who finished with 23 points and four assists. Dennis Parker Jr. added 19 points, six rebounds and four assists.
Longwood 81, Charleston Southern 79, OT: Elijah Tucker scored 21 points and Jaylen Benard made a go-ahead layup with 10.1 seconds left in overtime for the Lancers (12-10, 4-3 Big South) in Farmsville.
Tucker also had nine rebounds and three steals, and Johan Nziemi had 17 points and four steals.
The Buccaneers (11-11, 2-5) were led by A’lahn Sumler, who posted 30 points, nine assists and three steals. James Madison transfer Brycen Blaine added 20 points and nine rebounds.
East Carolina 63, North Texas 59: Joran Riley scored 15 points, including a three-point play with 33 seconds left, and ECU (6-14, 1-6 American Conference) ended a seven-game losing streak with a victory in Denton, Texas. Riley added two free throws on ECU’s next possession for a 61-56 lead.
Je’Shawn Stevenson had 18 points for the Mean Green (12-8, 3-4).
No. 3 Michigan 74, Ohio State 62: Yaxel Lendeborg had 18 points and nine rebounds, and Morez Johnson scored 12 points for the Wolverines (18-1, 8-1 Big Ten).
They took control with a 21-6 run in the second half after the visiting Buckeyes (13-6, 5-3) tied it for a ninth time midway through the second half.
Ohio State’s John Mobley Jr. scored 14 of his 22 points in the first half, after which Michigan led 33-30.
No. 24 Saint Louis 97, St. Bonaventure 62: Ishan Sharma scored 29 points as the visiting Billikens (19-1, 7-0 Atlantic 10) tied their best 20-game start in the program’s 110-year history, joining the 1993-94 team. Shooting 13 of 18 from 3-point range in the first half, they led 58-26 at the break.
Davonte Bowen scored 17 for the Bonnies (12-8, 1-6), who have lost six of their last seven.
Women
William & Mary 63, Northeastern 50: Cassidy Geddes had 20 points, four assists and four steals as the Tribe (9-8, 2-4 Coastal Athletic Association) ended a four-game skid by defeating the Huskies (6-11, 2-5) in Boston. W&M scored 10 consecutive points to move ahead 15-10 and led thereafter.
Also for W&M, Kyah Smith scored 11 points, Natalie Fox had 10 points and nine rebounds, and Jana Sallman had 10 points and seven rebounds. Yirsy Queliz led Northeastern with 10 points.
Mary Washington 88, Regent 20: Mackenzie Wharton had 19 points and Julianna Fisher had 12 points and nine rebounds as the Eagles (8-12) blew out the Royals (2-13) in Fredericksburg, taking a 24-3 first-quarter lead.
Regent’s Eliza Entzminger had seven points, and Mikaylah Telfer grabbed five rebounds.
Campbell 58, Hampton 43: Scoring 30 points in the lane, the Camels (12-8, 5-2 Coastal Athletic Association) stifled the Pirates (8-10, 2-4) at the HU Convocation Center. Gianni Boone had 21 points and six rebounds.
Campbell led 15-5 after one quarter. Hampton, led by Aisha Dabo’s 12 points, began the third quarter with a 10-2 run to pull to 33-26 but got no closer.
The Camels outrebounded HU 45-26, collecting 17 offensive boards.
Longwood 74, USC Upstate 50: A 34-point third quarter propelled the Lancers (14-6, 5-2 Big South) in Farmville as they ended a two-game slide. They forced the Spartans into turnovers on six consecutive possessions in that period, and USC Upstate (6-15, 1-6) finished with 38 giveaways.
Freshman Jesstynie Scott scored a season-high 20 points and made seven steals.
Radford 64, UNC Asheville 52: Catholic High graduate Cate Carlson scored all 12 of her points in the second half as the host Highlanders (13-9, 5-2 Big South) extended their winning streak to four.
UNCA (8-13, 3-5) scored 16 straight points to cut a 17-point deficit to one, but Joi Williams’ three-point play with 4:51 remaining began a game-closing surge by Radford.
