Kaase and junior guard Mike Edwards (Richmond, VA/Steward School) each scored 11 points in the first half for the Tigers, while Jon Godsey added eight for Ferrum. The Panthers led for much of the half, holding as much as a six-point advantage (18-12) with 14 minutes to play. The Tigers finally took their first lead of the game, 29-26, on an Edwards’ three-pointer with 7:55 remaining as the two-guard sparked a 12-0 run by scoring eight point over a four minute stretch that culminated in a 38-26 Tiger lead with 3:08 to play.
Hampden-Sydney held a nine point advantage at the break, 41-32, but Ferrum closed the second-half gap to just two points, 51-49, after starting the stanza on a 17-10 run that was led by eight straight points from Keith Harris. Troy Kaase then went on a 10-0 run of his own, while three-pointers by Drew Prehmus (Atlanta, GA/Wesleyan) and Matt Green (Richmond, VA/Thomas Dale) and a jumper by Mike Edwards put the Tigers in front by nine, 68-59, with 3:54 to play.
The Tigers then sealed the game down the stretch as they connected on seven-of-eight free throws over the final 1:16 en route to their third win in as many years over Ferrum.
Hampden-Sydney had yet another hot-shooting performance from the floor, connecting on 29-of-56 (51.8%), led by Troy Kaase’s 10-of-13 effort. Edwards finished the game with 15 points, while Prehmus added ten to give the Tigers three players in double figures. Kaase and sophomore Tyler Murray (Atlanta, GA/Harrison) each grabbed nine rebounds as the Tigers won the battle on the boards, 37-26.
“I thought we played hard today and felt good that we came away with a win despite not playing our best basketball,” said Tiger coach Bubba Smith. “We did some things well, out-rebounding them (Ferrum) was a big factor for us and it was great to see we had only ten turnovers, so we have to positive things to build on.”
Keith Harris finished with 13 points, while Jon Godsey had 12 and Rafael Holland and Ed Robinson scored ten each to put four Panthers in double figures. The Panthers shot 43.6 percent (24-of-55) from the floor, canned 10-of-19 (52.6%) from three-point range and knocked in 7-of-10 (70%) from the line on the afternoon.
Hampden-Sydney returns to the hardwood Wednesday, November 30, as the team heads to Virginia Beach, VA, to take on 11th-ranked (D3hoops.com) and defending ODAC champion Virginia Wesleyan at 7 pm. The game will be broadcast live on FM 95.7 WFLO and on the internet at www.hsc.edu/athletics.