The Basics
Score: #20 Roanoke 77 | #3 Marietta 68
Records: Maroons 2-0 | Pioneers 1-1
Location: Salem, Va.
The Lead: The championship game of the 2021 Dick Leftwich Tip-Off Tournament would feature a pair of top-20 teams as the 20th ranked Maroons played host to 3rd ranked Marietta College. Neither team would score in the early stages as defense was on full display. After a Pioneer hoop, Roanoke would take the lead, 7-5, and pull out to a nine-point halftime edge. The second half would see the Maroons lead by as many as 23 before a Marietta rally, after the 7:00 second half media timeout, would close the gap to seven. However, the visitors would get no closer as Roanoke picked up the, 77-68, win.
How it Happened:
- After both teams struggled to score and the game would be tied at 5-5. No one knew at the time, but a Tripp Greene layup give Roanoke a lead that they never relinquished.
- Joshua McClary scored and Efosa U-Edosomwan hit a 3-pointer to give Roanoke their first double-digit lead of the afternoon, 18-7.
- After the lead was cut to seven, Kasey Draper nailed a three to push the advantage back into double figures. The final five-minutes of the first half would be played to a virtual draw with the Maroons taking a 33-24 lead into the break.
- After a Pioneer score, another Greene deuce would start a run that would see the Maroons push their advantage to 15, with 14:36 left on the clock.
- A Nick Price jumper followed by another jump shot for Greene and the lead was 53-33.
- Three-point shooting would allow Marietta to hang in there (12-37), before mounting a rally late. With just under nine minutes to to, Draper gave Roanoke a 23-point advantage. However, the 3rd ranked Pioneers would start to cut into the deficit and with 21 seconds left on the clock, the RC advantage was down to seven, 75-68. A pair of U-Edosomwan free throws would wrap up the scoring as Roanoke picked up the nine-point, Tournament clinching win.
- Draper was named the Tournament MVP with a final stat line of 31 points, eight rebounds and two steals. U-Edosomwan joined his teammate on the All-Tournament team with 18 points and four boards. Ethan Rohan got the start in the middle and grabbed a game-high 12 rebounds. Greene finished with 10 while Price added eight points and five assists.
Up next: Roanoke will host Methodist University as the back end of a women's/men's double header on Wednesday night. The game will start at approximately 7:30pm.
2021 Dick Leftwich All-Tournament Team
William Blet - Eastern University
Trey Barber - Christopher Newport University
Lukas Isaly - Marietta College
Jason Ellis - Marietta College
Efosa U-Edosomwan - Roanoke College
Kasey Draper (MVP) - Roanoke College
