The Basics
Score: #20 Roanoke 96 | Pfeiffer 72
Records: Maroons 4-0 | Falcons 2-2
Location: Salem, Va.
The Lead: After having a scare on Wednesday night at the hands of Methodist, the Roanoke men's basketball team wrapped up their four-game home stand to start the season on Saturday afternoon. The Maroons wasted little time jumping on their guests from Pfeiffer as RC took an 11-0 advantage in the opening minutes. A Falcon run out of a timeout made it a one-possession game, but Roanoke would re-take control and pulled out to a 22-point lead at the break. The lead would grow into the 30's as Roanoke ran their record to 4-0 with the 96-72 victory.
How it Happened:
- The trio of Nick Price, Efosa U-Edosomwan, and Kasey Draper staked Roanoke to an 11-0 lead after just two minutes of play. Out of a Falcon timeout, Pfeiffer responded with seven straight to get back in the game.
- Brandon Ellington hit a 3-pointer followed by a Joshua McClary jumper to give the momentum back to the Maroons. A Draper jump shot grew the lead to double digits at the mid-way point of the first half and the Maroons would never look back.
- U-Edosomwan hit a transition three to push the lead to 20 and a Draper layup in the closing seconds gave Roanoke a 49-27 advantage at the half.
- The second half started with an U-Edosomwan personal 7-4 run as the RC lead grew. With 11:48 to go, Ellington put Roanoke up by 30 for the first time with a layup. With just over six minutes to play, McClary made it 84-49, the largest lead of the game.
- Pfeiffer would out-score the Maroons 23-12 the rest of the way but the Maroons pushed their overall record to a perfect 4-0 with the win.
- U-Edosomwan finished with a career high 27 points to go with four rebounds, four steals, and a pair of assists. Draper added 23 points with Ellington scoring nine and Justin Kuthan netting eight. Ethan Rohan grabbed a game-high nine boards and McClary handed out eight assists.
Up next: Roanoke will hit the road for the first time as they travel to Baltimore (Md.) for a pre-Thanksgiving matchup with Goucher on Tuesday night.
