No. 3 Richard Bland Defeats No. 6 Wake Tech (N.C.) 84-78

VIDEO HIGHLIGHTS (YouTube)

SOUTH PRINCE GEORGE, Va. -- Sophomore Stanley Taylor/Petersburg scored 15 points to lead No. 3 Richard Bland College to an 84-78 NJCAA Region 10 Men's Basketball Tournament Quarterfinal victory past No. 6 Wake Tech (N.C.) on Sunday evening in Statesman Hall.  Classmate Deon Joyner/North Charleston, South Carolina added 14 points for the tournament host Statesmen (21-8).  Koraan Clemonts led the visiting Eagles (14-16) with a game-high 28 points.  Richard Bland advances to next weekend's Region 10 Tournament Semifinals at Sandhills Community College (N.C.), and will face No. 7 Fayetteville Tech (N.C.) on Friday, March 9, at 2 p.m. in Pinehurst, North Carolina.

Richard Bland scored the opening basket of the game on a layup by Joyner, assisted by sophomore Tim Bing Jr./Suitland, Maryland at 19:42.  Wake Tech used a 10-4 run to lead 10-6 at 17:37, but the Statesmen answered with nine-straight points to go ahead 15-10 at 13:57.  Taylor scored the final five points with an offensive rebound put-back basket and a three-pointer in transition, assisted by sophomore Ricky Hicks/Bronx, New York.  The Eagles battled back to tie it at 17-17 with 11:27 on the first-half clock, but the hosts used a 10-4 run of their own to lead 27-21 at 8:47, getting three free throws from freshman Ryan Jones/Smithfield to get started and a slam dunk by classmate Kenny Southerland/Richmond to end the quick spurt, the dunk assisted by Hicks.  The Eagles were within 32-31 at 3:30, but Richard Bland outscored them 9-3 to the first-half buzzer to lead 41-34 at halftime, getting points from four different players, including a key three-point field goal by freshman Marvin Trotman/Virginia Beach.

Richard Bland took its largest lead early in the second half at 46-36 with 17:47 remaining after a steal and dunk by sophomore Tre' Patterson/Richmond.  The lead was 52-44 at 13:37 following a drive to the basket by Trotman, and it was 57-51 at 12:22 after a three-pointer from Bing.  Wake Tech rallied with eight-straight points to lead 59-57 at 10:11, and the lead went back-and-forth between the two teams until freshman Tyrell Mendenhall/Newberry, South Carolina scored on another offensive rebound put-back basket at 3:57 to give the Statesmen the lead for good at 71-69.  Hicks followed with a layup at 2:54 to make it 73-69, assisted on the score by sophomore Robert Smith/Hampton, who had a steal before the pass ahead to Hicks for the finish.  The Eagles were never closer than three points down the stretch, the last time at 81-78 with just 20-seconds on the clock, as Bing (2-2) and Taylor (1-2) closed the scoring with three free throws over the final 18.3-seconds for the exciting win.

Taylor led Richard Bland with his team-high 15 points, adding six rebounds and two steals.  Joyner finished with his 14 points, adding six rebounds, as well.  Bing contributed nine points, six assists and two steals, while Jones, Smith and Southerland each had eight points.  Southerland had nine rebounds and Smith had five rebounds.  Hicks added eight assists, while Patterson and Trotman each had seven points with Patterson adding two steals, as well.

Clemonts led Wake Tech with his game-high 28 points, while Eddie Volkerts finished with 19 points and Christian Anumihe had 17 points.

Richard Bland and Wake Tech were playing for the 12th time, and the Statesmen continue to lead the series at 8-4, including three hard-fought and close wins this season (76-73, 78-72 and 84-78). 

It was the final home game in Statesman Hall for Richard Bland fifth-year head coach Chuck Moore (125-39 at Richard Bland, 173-55 overall), who has announced his resignation, effective June 30.  The Statesmen finished 13-2 at home this season.  Moore is assisted by third-year assistant coach Preston Beverly.

Richard Bland has advanced to play No. 7 Fayetteville Tech in a tournament semifinal contest on Friday, March 9, at 2 p.m. in Pinehurst, North Carolina at Sandhills Community College.  The Trojans advanced with a 107-100 win past No. 2 Bryant & Stratton.  The other semifinal on March 9, at 12 p.m., has No. 1 Louisburg (N.C.) against No. 4 Pitt (N.C.).  Louisburg defeated No. 8 Guilford Tech (N.C.), 124-84, while Pitt defeated No. 5 Patrick Henry, 99-92.  The Region 10 Men's Basketball Tournament Championship will be played on Saturday, March 10, at 1 p.m. in Pinehurst.

Region 10 Tournament Semifinals, Friday, March 9 at Sandhills (N.C.) Community College
12 p.m. | No. 1 Louisburg vs. No. 4 Pitt
2 p.m. | No. 3 Richard Bland vs. No. 7 Fayetteville Tech

Region 10 Tournament Championship, Saturday, March 10, 1 p.m. at Sandhills (N.C.) Community College