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UD mens basketball team defeats William & Mary
The Fightin Blue Hens won for the fourth time in the last five outings to improve to 14-8 overall and 8-5 in the CAA. Drexel leads the CAA with a conference record of 10-3 and is followed by Virginia Commonwealth and Old Dominion, both 9-4, and UD and George Mason, both 8-5. UD will continue on the road with a game at Old Dominion at 7 p.m., Saturday, Feb. 14. The Hens edged the Monarchs 64-62 on Jan. 17. The Hens will then return home to face the University of North Carolina Wilmington at 7:30 p.m., Monday, Feb. 16, at the Bob Carpenter Sports/Convocation Center. The Seahawks are 7-7 in the CAA and squeezed past the Hens 50-49 on Jan. 24. In Wednesdays victory, UD senior guard Mike Ames led the team with 18 points while junior forward Robin Wentt, the CAA Co-Player of the Week, scored 10 points and pulled down 10 rebounds. It was the third straight game in which Wentt posted a double double, reaching double figures in both points and rebounds. With the loss, William & Mary fell to 6-17 overall and 3-11 in the CAA. Sophomore forward Taylor Mokris came off the bench to score 15 points on five three-point baskets and freshman forward Corey Cofield added 13 points. Adam Hess, the CAA's leading scorer who was coming off a 36-point performance against Drexel, was held to just 11 points before fouling out with 3:39 left in the game. "This was a complete team effort tonight," UD Head Coach David Henderson, who saw his team pick up its second conference road win of the season, said. "I'm proud of these guys. We played a tough, physical game and really hung in there. We are finding ways to win and this was an important win, especially since it was on the road. We did a good job defensively all night and really moved the ball well late in the game." Down 63-54 with 5:10 remaining, the Hens stormed back with a 14-1 run as Ames hit a big three-pointer. UD tied the score at 64-64 on a follow-up by David Lunn and Wentt added a basket off an offensive rebound for a 66-64 lead with 3:21 left, giving the Hens the lead for good. Calvin Smith later added a dunk to cap the 14-1 run, putting the Hens up 68-64 with 1:45 remaining. Ames connected on two free throws with 17 seconds left for a 71-66 lead, and Rulon Washington secured the victory with two free throws in the closing seconds. The Hens had balanced scoring throughout the lineup. Lebo Maepa scored nine points, and Mike Slattery had eight points and five assists, which put him over 400 for his career. Lunn had seven points and six assists, and Washington had seven points. Slattery, the Hens' starting point guard, left the game with a right knee sprain with 2:56 left but did return briefly. His status for Saturday's game at Old Dominion will be determined Thursday. To learn how to subscribe to UDaily, click here. |