No. 2 Richard Bland Earns Road Win At Northern Virginia 81-80

ANNANDALE, Va. -- Sophomore Stanley Taylor/Petersburg made 1-2 free throws with two-seconds remaining to lead No. 2 Richard Bland College to an 81-80 men's basketball road win at Northern Virginia Community College on Wednesday night in Annandale.  Taylor finished with nine points and eight rebounds, while sophomore Tim Bing Jr./Suitland, Maryland scored a team-high 16 points for the preseason nationally-ranked Statesmen (3-0), while classmate Ricky Hicks/Bronx, New York and freshman Ryan Jones/Smithfield each added 11 points for the visitors.  Maurice Gentry and Drew Jackson each scored 19 points for the host Nighthawks (0-2).  Richard Bland will return home to welcome the College of Southern Maryland on Friday night, November 10, at 7 p.m. in Statesman Hall.

Richard Bland fell behind 5-0 at the start before scoring nine-straight points to lead 9-5 at 14:24, getting points from five different players.  The Statesmen maintained their early advantage, leading 11-7 at 12:24 after a slam dunk by Taylor off an assist from Hicks, it was 16-10 at 11:00 following a jumper by Jones and the lead was 20-15 after another jumper from Jones at 9:59.  NOVA, however, used a 12-0 run to go ahead 27-20 at 6:02, and the Nighthawks led 31-25 at 3:30 before Richard Bland answered with a 13-0 run to take its largest lead of the half at 38-31 with 1:15 on the clock.  Redshirt-freshman Tyler Lloyd/Manassas sparked the quick outburst with nine points, including two three-point field goals, while Jones knocked down another jumper, as well.  The visitors led 39-36 at halftime behind nine points each from Jones and Lloyd.

Richard Bland began the second half with a 16-7 run to lead 55-45 at 15:17, getting seven of his nine second-half points from sophomore Tre' Patterson/Richmond, including a three-pointer and a dunk.  The Statesmen continued their momentum and took their largest lead of the game at 66-53 with 9:38 remaining as Bing scored five of his 13 second-half points with a three-pointer and two free throws.  NOVA, however, would not go away and rallied back with a 22-9 run to tie it at 75-75 with just 2:36 left.  Hicks made it 78-75 with a three-pointer at 2:15, but the Nighthawks tied it again at 78-78 with their own three-pointer at 2:05.  Hicks once-again answered with a steal and layup to make it 80-78 with 45-seconds remaining, but the hosts tied it yet again at 80-80 with a layup at :33.  Richard Bland missed its last shot attempt, but Taylor grabbed the offensive rebound and was fouled with just two-seconds on the clock.  He missed the first attempt but made the game-winning second free throw for the visitors.

Bing led Richard Bland with his team-high 16 points, including 3-6 three-pointers and 5-6 free throws, adding six rebounds and three assists.  Hicks and Jones each added 11 points, as it was a career-high for Jones, who made 5-6 free throws, in just his third collegiate game.  Patterson finished with 10 points, Taylor had his nine points and team-high eight rebounds, and Lloyd finished with a career-high nine points – all in the first half.  Sophomore Robert Smith/Hampton contributed seven points, five rebounds, a team-high four assists and a team-high two blocks.  The Statesmen shot 40% (27-67) from the field, including 41% (7-17) on three-pointers, and 63% (20-32) at the free throw line.

Gentry and Jackson led NOVA with their respective game-high 19 points, while Tavaris James added 11 points and Josh Rodgers had 10 points.  The Nighthawks shot 44% (29-66) from the field, including 42% (8-19) on three-pointers, and 61% (14-23) at the line.

Richard Bland and Northern Virginia were playing for the third time in the sport of men's basketball, and the Statesmen now lead the young series 3-0.