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Men's Basketball News |
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RAMS SUFFER 97-88 TRIPLE
OVERTIME LOSS AT AMERICAN TO END REGULAR SEASON
2-29-00
After mounting yet another second half comeback, Virginia
Commonwealth fought off defeat by forcing three overtime periods
with late scores before finally falling to American 97-88 in the
third overtime on Tuesday night in Bender Arena. It was the first
triple-overtime game in the program's history, and just its
second loss in six overtime contests this season.
Junior guard Bo Jones (Richmond, Va.) led five Rams in double
figures as he scored 22 points. Jones has now scored 57 points in
his last two games. Jones also had five assists, sharing the team
lead with junior guard LaMar Taylor (Richmond, Va.), who also
tallied 17 points. Shawn Hampton (Baltimore, Md.) recorded his
fifth double-double of the season for Virginia Commonwealth as he
scored 10 points and grabbed 12 rebounds. The Eagles' Patrick
Doctor led all scorers with 28 points.
The Rams struggled in the first half and trailed by 10, 35-25, at
halftime. As the second half began, Virginia Commonwealth would
slice away at its deficit. A free throw by Jones cut American's
lead to 41-38, but the Eagleswould build their lead back to 10
points. The Rams again made a charge and took their first lead of
the second half when junior L.F. Likcholitov (St. Petersburg,
Russia) made a layup to put them up 60-59 with 4:30 remaining in
regulation.
American would rally and retake the lead. Trailing 67-65,
Virginia Commonwealth junior guard Scott Lilly (Charlotte, N.C.)
hit a jumper in the lane with 10 seconds remaining to force the
first overtime. The Eagles led by four points with a minute
remaining in the first extra period but could not hold the lead,
as Jones hit four free throws in the last 30 seconds to tie the
score at 78 and force a second extra frame.
In the second overtime, the Rams would take an early lead, but
American would respond and led 84-81 with under 30 seconds
remaining. But Taylor drained a three-pointer with time running
out to send the game to the decisive third overtime period. The
Eagles controlled play for most of the last extra frame, scoring
the first six points and hitting free throws in the closing
seconds to put the game out of reach.
The loss snaps a three-game winning streak for the Rams, which
end the regular season with a 14-13 record overall and a 7-9 mark
in Colonial Athletic Association play. American now stands at
10-17 on the season and 5-11 in the conference. Virginia
Commonwealth will next be in action on Saturday in the
quarterfinal round of the CAA tournament. The Rams, the
tournament's fifth seed, will face fourth-seeded North
Carolina-Wilmington on Saturday at the Richmond Coliseum. The
game is scheduled for a 2:30 p.m. start.
This page was last updated
03/02/00 at 01:06 PM
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