No. 9 Richard Bland Rolls Past Vance-Granville (N.C.) 101-71

GAME VIDEO HIGHLIGHTS

SOUTH PRINCE GEORGE, Va. -- Sophomore Jaquan Wooten/Kinston, North Carolina scored 17 points to lead No. 9 Richard Bland College to a 101-71 NJCAA Region 10 men's basketball victory past Vance-Granville (N.C.) Community College on Wednesday night at Statesman Hall.  Sophomore Gevon Arrington/Petersburg added 16 points, and freshman Robert Smith/Hampton had a season-high 14 points for the nationally-ranked Statesmen (24-4, 16-2), who improved to 12-1 at home this season.  NiQuon Cousins scored a game-high 24 points for the visiting Vanguards (5-23, 2-17).

Richard Bland, No. 9 in this week's NJCAA Division II Top 20 Poll, scored the first four points of the night on a slam dunk by Wooten and a layup by Arrington.  Vance-Granville took its only lead of the contest at 6-4 after back-to-back three-point field goals from Chris Pernell.  A jumper by Wooten at 16:30 made it 10-8, and started a 24-8 run for a 32-16 advantage at 9:36.  Arrington (6), freshman Stanley Taylor/Petersburg (6) and Wooten (5) combined for 17 of the points.  A dunk by Smith at 4:14 made it 46-22, and the Statesmen would maintain the margin to lead 50-26 at the intermission.  The trio of Arrington (10), Wooten (9) and Taylor (9) totaled 28 first-half points.

Richard Bland continued to control the contest in the second half, extending the lead to 57-27 at 17:02 after a three-pointer from Arrington.  The Statesmen took their largest lead at 66-30 with 12:48 remaining, as a layup from freshman Deon Joyner/North Charleston, South Carolina capped a quick 8-0 run that included another dunk from Wooten.  A layup by sophomore Jalen Jackson/North Plainfield, New Jersey made it 75-42 at 9:05, and a layup by freshman Tim Bing Jr./District Heights, Maryland made it 80-46 at 7:26.  A conventional three-point play from freshman Ricky Hicks/Bronx, New York with 5:21 left made it 87-54, and consecutive three-pointers by Joyner had the score at 93-59 with 3:16 on the clock.  A thunderous wind-mill dunk by Smith closed the scoring for the hosts in the final minute.

Wooten led Richard Bland with his 17 points, adding eight rebounds, three steals and a game-high three blocks.  Arrington added 16 points and nine rebounds for the Statesmen.  Smith finished with season-highs of 14 points, seven rebounds and five assists.  Hicks and Taylor each contributed 11 points, with Hicks adding game-highs of seven assists and four steals, while Joyner finished with nine points and four rebounds.

Richard Bland shot 57% (40-70) from the field, including 29% (5-17) on three-pointers, and 53% (16-30) at the free throw line.  The Statesmen had advantages of 64-18 in points in the paint, 25-13 in points off turnovers, 22-2 in second chance points, 28-2 in fast break points and 45-8 in bench points.

Cousins led Vance-Granville with his game-high 24 points, adding a game-high 14 rebounds, while TyQuon Reid added 17 points and Pernell had 11 points.  The Vanguards shot 30% (19-64) from the field, including 29% (10-35) on three-pointers, and 72% (23-32) at the line.

Richard Bland and Vance-Granville were playing for the eighth time in the sport of men's basketball, and the Statesmen have never dropped a game to the Vanguards, now leading the series 8-0. 

Richard Bland inducted two new members into its Athletics Hall of Fame during a special pregame ceremony.  The Class of 2017 includes Dr. Eric Cunningham '86, a member of the men's basketball team from 1984-86, along with Michael Gray '90, a member of the team from 1988-90.  Cunningham led the Statesmen in both scoring and rebounding during his two years with the program, and was named the Team MVP during 1985-86, averaging a double-double of 19.5 points and 10.3 rebounds.  Gray played for both the 1988-89 and 1989-90 Region 10 Championship teams, and was named the Team MVP during 1989-90, averaging a team-best 13.2 points, while second on the team with 7.0 rebounds.

Richard Bland remains at home for its final Region 10 game to complete the regular season, as Wake Technical (N.C.) Community College visits on Saturday night, Feb. 25 at 7 p.m.  It'll be Sophomore Night in recognition of the six Statesmen completing their eligibility with the program this season.