NEWPORT NEWS, Va. - Christopher Newport University opened its home schedule Wednesday night, and the Captains and Yellow Jackets of Randolph-Macon College staged an early-season battle of Top 10-ranked programs. R-MC improved to 3-0 after holding off the Captains, 71-65, in front of 971 fans at the Freeman Center.
The Captains, now 1-1, trailed by one at halftime, 36-35, following a back-and-forth first half that featured eight ties and nine lead changes. CNU, however, was unable to take the lead at any point of the second half, and the Yellow Jackets held on for the six-point triumph.
"They made some big shots in the second half and we didn't," Head Coach
John Krikorian said following the game. "I was really pleased with our effort, and I think our guys gave it everything they had. We're going to get a lot better thanks to what we learned tonight and we're going to continue to grow."
Junior guard
Tyson Henderson led the Captains in scoring with 14 points, with 11 coming in the second half. Henderson's playing time was limited in the first half following his second personal foul. Junior
Ethan Ward and junior transfer
Zyir Baskerville both scored 11, with seven of Baskerville's points coming after halftime.
"I think we're just starting to scratch the surface of what kind of player Zyir can be," Krikorian continued. "You can see his fight and his speed and athleticism, he's a wonderful kid to coach and I think it's scary to think of what he can become."
R-MC out-rebounded the Captains, 34-31, and held a 21-16 edge in the second half. Junior
Ryan Derderian led the Captains on the boards with five.
Senior Keishawn Pulley, Jr., led the Jackets with 15 points and fellow senior Jabril Robinson tallied ten, with all coming after the intermission. Randolph-Macon snapped a six-game losing streak at the Freeman Center with the win, and the Yellow Jackets now hold a 22-12 lead in the all-time series.
Christopher Newport was ranked ninth in the pre-season by D3hoops.com, while Randolph-Macon was slotted second in the national poll. CNU returns to action on Saturday in Washington, D.C., taking on the Catholic University of America. Tip off time is set for 3:00 p.m.
"We don't have time to hang our heads," Krikorian concluded. "Catholic just beat Randolph-Macon in March in the NCAA Tournament , so we're talking about a program that's the same calibre or even better. We have to do some things better than we did today to put us in a position to win the game at the end."
