Box Score
(Ashland, Va.) – The #10-ranked Dickinson men's basketball team came up just shy of a return trip to the NCAA Tournament "Elite Eight", falling to #9-ranked Virginia Wesleyan, 75-65, at Randolph-Macon on Friday night. The Red Devils cap another outstanding season, finishing 24-6, matching the school record with 24 wins.
The Red Devils were led by senior forward Gerry Wixted (Moorestown, N.J./Camden Catholic) with a game-high 26 points. He eclipsed the 1,900-point mark for his career, finishing with 1,903.
Khory Moore put Virginia Wesleyan in front, 6-2, with a pair of three-pointers and dished off an assist to Tim Jones for another to start off with a 9-3 run. Wixted converted a three-point play and scored again to cut the deficit 9-8.
Steve Collins (Rydal, Pa./La Salle College) hit a short jumper and Wixted knocked down a three-pointer to tie the game, 13-13, with 14:38 remaining in the first half. Ted Hinnenkamp (York, Pa./York Suburban) put the Devils in front but Breven Lyons hit the Marlins' fourth triple of the game to regain the advantage, 16-15.
The Red Devils received good minutes from first-years Justus Melton (Charlotte, N.C./Covenant Day) and Moses Romocki (Creedmoor, N.C./Cardinal Gibbons) as they helped Dickinson to a 20-20 tie, with 8:19 to play in the half.
The Marlins extended the lead to eight at the 2:39 mark. Chris Cox (Dix Hills, N.Y./Half Hollow Hills West) found Hinnenkamp for an easy lay-up and Romocki dished off to Wixted to pull the Devils within four at the break, 30-26.
Dickinson was dominant in the paint, outscoring the Marlins, 20-8. Wesleyan held the advantage in points-off-turnovers, 8-0.
The Devils came out on fire to start the second half. Wixted made a strong move to the basket and then knocked down a three-pointer. He found Hinnenkamp for a lay-up and the lead, 33-32, with 18:13 on the clock.
Jones and Lyons sandwiched a pair of three-pointers around two free throws from Moore to stretch the lead back to seven, 40-33, with 16:06 to play. Robert Picka (Cockeysville, Md./Dulaney) came on to hit a pair of free throws and a 16-foot jumper to cut the lead to 42-37.
Lyons came back with a three-pointer and Kaelin Poe finished inside to give Virginia Wesleyan a double-digit lead, with 13:04 to play. Romocki connected with Wixted inside and Collins drained a three-pointer to cut the lead in half.
Hinennkamp twice pulled the Devils within five, at the 7:28 mark and again with 6:52 left to play. Poe put-back a rebound and Cameron Owens added a free throw for an eight point advantage. Doyle hit a huge three-pointer to stretch the margin to 11, with just under six minutes to play.
Wixted went to the line twice, hitting all four free throws. Doyle answered in the middle with his third triple of the game, giving the Marlins their largest lead of the night.
Collins connected from deep to cut the deficit to single digits and Wixted added another three-pointer later to pull Dickinson within seven at the 1:24 mark.
The Marlins shot 8-for-12 from the line in the final 1:44 to help secure the win, 75-65, as they advance to a rematch of the ODAC Championship, facing host and #1-ranked Randolph-Macon at 7:00 pm on Saturday.
Wixted finished with a double-double, adding 10 rebounds to his 28 points, three assists and three blocked shots. He played 36 minutes on the night, hitting 5-of-7 free throws. Hinnenkamp saw action for all but two minutes, recording his third double-double in the past five games, scoring 15 points and controlling 10 rebounds. He added a game-high four assists.
Collins tallied eight points while Cox scored seven to go with three rebounds and a pair of assists. Romocki scored four points and matched the game-high with four assists. Brandon Angradi (Milford, Pa./Delaware Valley) controlled six rebounds and handed out three assists.
Four players reached double-figures for Virginia Wesleyan (25-5). Poe led the way with 16 points and 14 rebounds, hitting 7-of-10 shots on the night. Lyons went 4-for-8 from the three-point land for a team-high, 17 points.
The Red Devils (24-6) advanced to the NCAA "Sweet 16" for the second straight season, winning the Centennial Conference Championship for the second time in three seasons. The seniors will graduate with more wins than any other class in program history. They posted a mark of 83-33, over the past four seasons.
