HARRISONBURG, Virginia - The No. 15 VWU men's basketball team dethroned the Royals of Eastern Mennonite University 73-49 on Wednesday night in a midweek ODAC matchup in Harrisonburg, Va. The Marlins move to 17-3 overall and 9-2 in ODAC competition, while the Royals are now 5-16 and 3-9.

INSIDE THE SCORE
The game began with Corey Pelham hitting a three-pointer to get the Marlins on the board first 14-seconds into action. The Royals countered with a 6-0 run to take the lead over VWU 6-3 at 17:23. A six-point rally by Percy Burt gave the Marlins a 9-8 lead as the clock hit 13:44. The teams traded baskets and the lead five times before the Royals took a three-point lead, 18-15, with under seven to go. Virginia Wesleyan kicked up the heat as they closed out the first half on a 13-6 rally leading 33-21 at the horn. 

The teams stayed within ten-points of each other for the first four and a half minutes as the score sat 39-29. VWU went on an 8-0 run opening an 18-point lead, 47-29, with 12:48 to play. The Marlins maintained a healthy double-digit lead of 15+ points the remainder of the game and ended up winning 73-49.

NO. 15 VIRGINIA WESLEYAN LEADERS
The Marlins were led by Daniel Spencer with 20 points on the evening shooting 9-of-17 from the field. COrey Pelham added 13 points while Percy Burt and Kelvin Nicholson each added 10. Burt recorded a double-double with a game-high 15 rebounds.

EASTERN MENNONITE LEADERS
The Royals were led by Tim Jones with 21 points. Jones was joined by Michael Williams as the only other EMU player to reach double-figures with 11 points. 

KEY MOMENT
The key moment of the game came in the final seven minutes of the first half when the Marlins went on a 13-6 rally taking a 33-21, 12-point lead, into halftime.

UP NEXT
No. 15 Virginia Wesleyan is back that the Jane P. Batten Student Center this weekend when they play host to the Wildcats of Randolph College. The Wildcats and Marlins will meet at 2 p.m. on Saturday, February 8, in ODAC Competition.