The Virginia Wesleyan University men's basketball team (19-8, 13-3 ODAC) was defeated by Roanoke 78-69 in overtime in the Semifinals of the ODAC Championship Tournament.
Omari DeVeaux led the team in scoring with 26, shooting 10-for-23 from the field, 3-for-8 from beyond the arc, and 3-for-6 from the charity stripe, with three assists, and two blocks.
Amari Moorer collected a double-double with 13 points and 13 rebounds, shooting 6-for-13 from the floor, 1-for-4 from three-point territory, had two assists, and one steal.
Paul Anderson scored 13 points, shooting 4-for-10 from the field, 3-for-8 from deep, and 2-for-2 from the line, with five rebounds and two assists.
The first half started off fast as the Maroons jumped out to take an 8-4 lead at the 17:24 mark in the first half. For the next two minutes, neither team scored a basket, but the Marlins scored a bucket at the 15:40 mark that sparked an 8-3 run over the next two minutes to take a 12-11 lead with 13:40 left in the half. Roanoke countered with a 4-0 run to retake the lead at 15-12. VWU was able to make a three-pointer to tie the game at 15-15.
The two teams traded points over the next three minutes, which tied the game at 21-21 at the 8:19 mark in the half. Virginia Wesleyan's offense rallied and went on a 6-0 run in the next 51 seconds to take a 27-21 lead with 7:07 left in the half. Roanoke was able to chip away at the Marlins' lead over the next two and a half minutes to cut the lead to 30-29 with 4:22 before halftime. Roanoke continued their good run of play at the end of the half and outscored VWU 5-4 to tie the game at 34-34 at halftime.
Coming out of the break, each team scored four points over the next three minutes to bring the score to 38-38 at the 16:25 mark. The Marlins rallied over the next 92 seconds to take a 44-40 lead with 14:38 left in the half. Roanoke responded, going on a 6-2 run to tie the game at 46-46, and followed that run with an 8-0 run to take a 54-46 lead with 6:57 left in the second half.
VWU stopped the run with a 5-3 run to cut the lead to 57-51. The next four minutes were low scoring, but the Marlins managed to outscore the Maroons 5-4 to cut the lead to 61-56 with 1:15 left in the half. Down by five, the Marlins needed a spark, and the ODAC Player of the Year DeVeaux made a clutch three to bring the score to 61-59. With defense being a priority for both teams, each offense did not make a single basket until DeVeaux made a layup with .7 seconds left on the clock to tie the game, and was fouled to give Omari the opportunity to win the game in the final second with a free throw, but was unable to convert to force overtime.
With five more minutes on the clock, Roanoke came out hot and went on an 8-0 run to start the third period to lead 69-61 with 3:17 left in OT. The Marlins went on a 4-2 run over the next 47 seconds to bring the score to 71-65. However, RC remained in control the rest of the game and sealed the 78-69 win over VWU.
