Roanoke College opened up a double-digit lead in the first half Saturday afternoon and the Maroons held off Bridgewater College down the stretch to take a 80-73 victory in the ODAC regular season finale.
Roanoke big man Daniel Eacho had a career game in the first half against the Eagles to lead the Maroons to a 39-28 halftime lead. Eacho came into the game averaging just 3.9 points per game and had reached double figures just once this season with 14 points against Emory & Henry.
Eacho controled the paint against the Eagles in the first 20 minutes and finished the half with 16 points.
Logan Singleton opened the second half with a 3-pointer to put the Maroons up by 14 and Roanoke maintained a comfortable working margin until the final seven minutes of the game.
That’s when the Eagles made their run at the Maroons.
The Maroons led by 10 when BC’s Kyle Van Orden stole the ball near midcourt and converted the steal into a breakaway slam to trim the deficit to eight, 64-56, with 7:23 left.
Two free throws by Singleton made it 66-57 before a 3-pointer by Bridgewater guard Cody Griffith trimmed the margin to six, 66-60, with 5:41 to play.
The Eagles continued to chip away at the margin and cut it to four on two free throws by Ed Reddick, making the score 71-67, with 3:23 left.
Zach Barrett hit a pair of foul shots for the Maroons, but Ronnie Thomas knocked down a 3-pointer in transition off an assist from Matthew Hunter to make it a three-point game, 73-70, with 2:23 to play.
After a Roanoke turnover, the Eagles had a chance to move closer, but Hunter’s open 15-footer went halfway down before popping out. Barret missed a jumper on Roanoke’s next possession, but the Eagles came up empty once again when Griffith driving layup was partially blocked from behind and Singleto controlled the board for the Maroons.
The Maroons spread the floor and Singleton worked free for an open layup with 43 seconds rremaining to give the Maroons a five-point, 75-70, lead. Thomas then missed a jumper and Singleton knocked down two free throws to make it 77-70 with 27 seconds left.
Griffith, who missed the previous five games with an injury, returned for senior day and the Eagles’ lone senior scored 21 points on 7-for-11 shooting, including 3-of-4 from beyond the arc. Reddick just missed a double-double with 20 poins and a team-high nine rebounds. Thomas added 11 points and five assists for the Eagles.
Eacho led the Maroons with 21 points and Singleton added 19. Kwasi Amponsah, the ODAC’s leading scorer was held to 13 points, five below his average.
The Eagles finish the regular season with a 7-18 overall record and a 4-12 mark in the ODAC. Bridgewater will hit the road Tuesday night for a first-round game in the ODAC tournament. Tournament pairings will be announced later this weekend.
Roanoke finishes the regular season at 7-18 overall and 3-13 in the ODAC.
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