Washington and Lee University
UP NEXT:
Should W&L defeat Roanoke, it would face the winner of the game between top-seeded Guilford and eighth-seeded Eastern Mennonite on Saturday at 6:00 pm. The championship game will be played on Sunday at 3:30 pm.
THE HEAD GENERAL:
The Generals are coached by Adam Hutchinson (Amherst '93), who is in his fifth season at W&L and his ninth season as a head coach. He enters the ODAC Tournament with a 71-150 (.326) overall record and a 39-84 (.317) record with the Generals. However, over the past two seasons, Hutchinson has guided W&L to a 26-24 (.520) overall record. Prior to taking over in Lexington, Hutchinson was the head coach at both Stevens Tech (1999-01) and Case Western Reserve (2002-04). He is assisted by Sean Grant (NYU '02).
THE SERIES:
W&L and Roanoke will be meeting for the 112th time, with the Maroons holding a 74-37 advantage in the all-time series. The two teams split their regular season series in 2007-08, with each winning on the other team's home floor. W&L took the last encouter in overtime by a 67-59 count on Feb. 2 in Salem, Va. The Generals have tangled with Roanoke more than any opponent all-time and W&L's 74 losses to the Maroons are the most defeats to any opponent all-time.
LAST TIME OUT:
Senior forward Greg Bienemann totaled 28 points and seven rebounds to lead Washington and Lee to an 80-56 win over Bridgewater on Saturday evening at Nininger Hall. The Generals shot 56.5 percent (13-23) from the floor in the first half and assumed the lead for good at 17-16 on a three-pointer by freshman guard Jason Cimino at the 6:35 mark. W&L stretched its lead to 34-26 at halftime and used a 13-2 run to start the second stanza in pushing out to a 47-28 lead just 2:15 into the second half. W&L shot 52.2 percent (24-46) for the game and drilled 24-of-36 (.667) free throws en route to leading by as many as 26 points (79-53) in the second half. Bienemann finished the game 8-for-8 from the floor and 12-of-15 from the free throw line. Junior guard Isaiah Goodman contributed 13 points on 3-of-4 shooting from beyond the arc, while junior forward Kirk Jones chipped in 11 points. Senior guard Andrew Cathlin paced the Eagles with 16 points and five rebounds. Junior forward Michael Oblitey and sophomore guard Dominick Trawick added eight points each.
GAME #1 vs. ROANOKE:
(RC 71, W&L 64 • Jan. 13, 2008 • Lexington, Va.)
Roanoke College recovered from a 12-1 deficit to start the game in posting a 71-64 victory over Washington and Lee at the Warner Center. The Maroons missed each of their first seven shots from the field and trailed by 11 points with 14:17 left in the first half. However, Roanoke chipped away at the Generals’ lead and the teams went into the half tied at 34-34. Roanoke then began the second half on an 11-4 run to assume a 45-38 lead with 11:09 left in the game and never relinquished the lead. W&L cut it to a two-point game (63-61) on a three-pointer by junior guard Chris McHugh with 36 seconds remaining, but Roanoke hit all eight of its free throws from that point on to post the seven-point win. The Generals were led by senior forward Greg Bienemann, who totaled a game-high 28 points and 13 rebounds. McHugh tallied a career-high 15 points on 4-of-6 shooting from three-point range, while senior forward Femi Kusimo added 10 points and five rebounds. Roanoke was paced by senior guard A.J. Dowell, who notched 23 points and four rebounds. Senior forward Josh LaPorte chipped in 17 points and eight boards.
GAME #2 vs. ROANOKE:
(W&L 67, RC 59 {OT} • Feb. 2, 2008 • Salem, Va.)
The Washington and Lee men’s basketball team claimed its sixth-straight victory and its first win in the Bast Center in 19 years with a 67-59 overtime win at Roanoke College. The Generals shot just 35.5 percent (22-62) from the field, but hit 16-of-21 free throws (.762) and held a 45-37 advantage on the boards. The first half featured six ties and eight lead changes before W&L closed the half on an 8-0 run for a 30-24 lead at the break. However, the Generals missed each of their first 14 shots of the second half and Roanoke went on a 12-0 run to assume a 36-30 lead with 13:52 left. W&L answered at the 11:00 mark when senior forward Femi Kusimo converted an old-fashion three-point play to make it 36-33. Kusimo’s basket ignited a 12-2 Generals’ run that gave W&L a 44-38 lead with 6:35 left. The rest of regulation remained tight and the Maroons tied the score at 53-53 as senior guard Keith Carter hit 1-of-2 free throws with seven seconds remaining to send the game into an extra session. Junior guard Chris McHugh gave W&L the lead on a jumper just 17 seconds into overtime and the Generals hit 10-of-12 free throws the rest of the way to pull away for the win. Senior forward Greg Bienemann led four Generals in double-figures with 17 points and seven rebounds. Junior guard Isaiah Goodman tallied 15 points, four rebounds and four steals, while Kusimo notched 13 points and a career-high 15 rebounds. McHugh chipped in 10 points and four assists. Roanoke was led by senior forward Josh LaPorte, who tallied 14 points and nine rebounds. Senior guard A.J. Dowell registered 13 points, while senior guard Ben Shrader added 11 points.
SCOUTING ROANOKE:
Roanoke finished the regular season 17-8 overall and 11-7 in the ODAC after a 71-68 loss at Eastern Mennonite on Saturday evening. The Maroons held a 50-39 advantage on the boards, but shot just 40.8 percent (29-71) from the floor and committed 23 turnovers. Senior forward Josh LaPorte led RC with 16 points and 12 rebounds, while junior guard Zach Milton tallied 12 points on 6-of-8 shooting from the floor. For the season, Roanoke is led by junior forward Curtis Peery, who averages 12.9 points and 7.2 rebounds per game. Senior guard A.J. Dowell, who missed the EMU game, is averaging 10.8 points per game, while LaPorte contributes 10.6 points, 7.9 rebounds, 2.7 assists, 1.7 steals and 1.3 blocks per game. As a team, the Maroons are holding their opponents to just 39.5 percent shooting from the floor and 69.2 points per game.
W&L's LAST ODAC TOURNAMENT CONTEST:
(First Round • #1 VWC 82, #8 W&L 48 • Feb. 22, 2007 • Salem, Va.)
Top-seeded Virginia Wesleyan used a 25-4 second-half run to cruise to an 82-48 victory over Washington and Lee in the quarterfinals of the 2007 Old Dominion Athletic Conference Men's Basketball Tournament at the Salem Civic Center. Virginia Wesleyan opened the game with seven-unanswered points and pushed the lead to 12 points (22-10) with 11:20 to play in the first half. The Generals cut the lead to seven points (24-17) with 5:47 remaining before the break, but the Marlins pulled away and held a 15-point (39-25) advantage at halftime. The Marlins then used the aforementioned run to take a 64-28 lead with 11:17 remaining in the contest en route to the 36-point victory. VWC shot 56.7 percent (34-60) from the floor and 58.8 percent from downtown (10-17). The Marlins also held the edge on the boards, out-rebounding the Generals, 40-26. W&L was paced by forward Greg Bienemann’s 16 points and 13 rebounds. Forward Ben Heller added seven points and three steals. The Marlins were led by senior forward Brandon Adair and guard Tonton Balenga, who each notched 15 points. Adair shot 7-of-9 from the floor, while Balenga hit 3-of-6 from beyond the arc. Guards D’Juan Tucker and Stephen Fields also tallied double-figures for VWC, registering 10 markers apiece.
W&L's LAST ODAC TOURNAMENT CONTEST AGAINST ROANOKE:
(Semifinals • #2 RC 66, #6 W&L 60 • Feb. 20, 2000 • Salem, Va.)
Sixth-seeded Washington and Lee shot 50 percent from the floor (18-36), 50 percent from three-point land (9-18), and 75 percent (15-20) from the free throw line, but it wasn't enough as Roanoke edged the Generals, 66-60, in the semifinals of the 2000 ODAC Tournament. W&L shot 55.6 percent and led by as many as six points on several occasions in posting a 29-27 halftime advantage. The Generals held the lead until the 15:47 mark of the second half, when Colby Leftwich gave the Maroons a 35-34 lead on a lay-up. W&L could not regain the lead and the Maroons pulled away late en route to winning the ODAC title the next night. W&L was led by forward Ryan Small, who scored 14 points on 3-of-5 shooting from beyond the three-point arc. Guard Will Ballard notched 13 points and seven rebounds, while center Brian Ricketts scored 10 points and grabbed five rebounds. Ricketts set a new ODAC Tournament record by going 13-for-13 from the free throw line in the Generals' two games. Ballard was 9-of-9 from the line in the tournament as well. Jason Strickland led Roanoke with 20 points on 8-of-9 shooting from the floor. He also grabbed eight rebounds and tied an ODAC Tournament record with eight steals in the game. Brad Dunleavy notched 15 points, while Colby Leftwich tallied 11 points and five boards.
STRONG START = STRONG FINISH:
W&L is 23-1 in its last 24 games (14-1 this season) when leading at the break and has compiled a 57-24 (.704) record over the past 10 years when it leads at the break. W&L has won a total of 73 games during that stretch, meaning that the Generals have led at halftime in just over 78 percent of their wins during the last 10 years.
W&L IN THE ODAC TOURNAMENT:
&L has played 36 ODAC Tournament games over the years and is 16-20 (.444) all-time in those games, 1-5 against Roanoke. Below is a breakdown of the Generals vs. the members of the ODAC in tournament play:
BC (4-0)
EMU (3-0)
E&H (1-0)
GC (0-0)
H-SC (3-4)
LC (3-3)
Maryville (1-2)
R-MC (0-4)
RC (1-5)
VWC (0-2)
GIMME FIVE MORE -- MINUTES THAT IS:
W&L has been more than happy to win in regulation, but the Generals' two most significant victories this season have occurred in overtime. W&L broke a 43-game losing streak to Randolph-Macon earlier this season when it defeated the Yellow Jackets, 77-75, in overtime. The Generals also won their first game at Roanoke in 19 years when they downed the Maroons, 67-59, in overtime. W&L has played three overtime games this season and is 2-1 in those contests. The Generals opened the season with a 57-55 overtime loss to Drew University.
CLIMBING THE LADDER:
W&L has been making a steady climb as a program over the past four seasons. The Generals went 2-23 in 2004-05 and were the first team in ODAC history to go winless in conference play (0-18). W&L improved to 4-19 (4-14 ODAC) in 2005-06 and then notched an 11-14 overall mark and a 6-12 record in the ODAC last season. This year, W&L has improved to 15-10 overall and 11-7 in the ODAC.
SWEET SIXTEEN:
The Generals are chasing their 16th win of the season as they enter this weekend's ODAC Tournament. W&L's 15 wins are already the most since going 15-12 during the 1989-90 season, which was the Generals' last winning season before this winter. Since leaving the University Division (now Division I) in 1956-57, W&L has had just 15 seasons of 16 or more wins.
MORE NUMBER TALK:
Just as the Generals are making history in terms of overall victories, they have already reached a historic mark within the ODAC. With its 11 ODAC victories this season (11-7), W&L has tied its top mark for ODAC wins in a season. The 1981-82 team went 11-3 overall en route to an ODAC Tournament runner-up finish.
TOURNAMENT SEEDING TALK:
The Generals' No. 5 seed for this season's tournament marks their highest ODAC Tournament seeding since claiming the fourth seed for the 1991 tournament. W&L finished that year with a 12-14 overall record and a 7-9 mark in the ODAC. The Generals fell to Virginia Wesleyan in the first round, 82-71.
FABULOUS FEMI:
Senior forward Femi Kusimo has been the Generals' top shooter over the past four seasons. Kusimo is a career 59.7 percent (388-650) shooter from the floor and last season, he set a new W&L season record by shooting 61.5 percent (110-179) en route to averaging 10.8 points and 5.3 rebounds per game. This season, Kusimo is second on the team in scoring with an average of 10.6 points per game and he is shooting 61.3 percent (117-190) from the floor. He has two games this season in which he has gone 10-for-11 from the field. Kusimo has played in 87 career games and has scored 906 points, an average of 10.4 points per game.
MOVIN' ON UP:
Senior forward Greg Bienemann has been enjoying one of the best seasons in W&L history. He currently ranks second in the ODAC in scoring (21.7 ppg), third in field goal percentage (.598), seventh in rebounding (7.3 rpg) and 11th in blocked shots (0.8 bpg). His scoring average also ranks 27th-nationally, while his shooting percentage in 22nd-best in Division III. Bienemann claims 74 career double-digit scoring efforts, 26 games of at least 20 points and six games of at least 30 points. He has also scored in double figures in 27 of his last 29 games. Bienemann had a career-best 37-point effort in a 98-81 win over Emory & Henry, his fourth game this season of 30 or more points. With his 542 points this season, Bienemann has moved into seventh place on the Generals' all-time scoring list with 1,556 career points. He is just seven points shy of surpassing Lee Marshall '57 for sixth place and only 37 points from moving into fifth place.
W&L ALL-TIME LEADING SCORERS
1. Dom Flora (1954-58), 2,310
2. Jay Handlan (1948-52), 2,002
3. Mel Cartwright (1966-67), 1,800
4. Mike Daniel (1968-72), 1,665
5. Skip Lichtfuss (1970-74), 1,592
6. Lee Marshall (1954-57), 1,561
7. Greg Bienemann (2004-pr.), 1,556
8. Chris Jacobs (1987-91), 1,523
9. Cam Dyer (1992-96), 1,508
10. John Lee Graves (1980-84), 1,441
--GENERALS--