EMU (8-8) led by as much as 17 in the first half at 29-12 with 5:13 remaining before SVU (8-13) went on a 15-3 run to close the half and get within five at the break. In the second half, EMU led by 11 with 14:08 to go before SVU hit four three-pointers in a span of three minutes to cut the lead to 54-52 with 10:20 remaining.
The Knights tied the game for the first and last time since the opening tip at 56-56 with 8:32 remaining. Back-to-back lay-ups by Whiting (Stafford, Va.) ignited a 9-2 run that put the Royals back up by seven. The lead never dropped below five as the Royals went on to post the 86-74 triumph.
EMU shot 49% from the floor but went 0-for-8 from the three-point arch. The Royals made up for the lack of long-range shooting by going to the free throw line 45 times, sinking 36 attempts (80%). EMU held a 35-33 edge in rebounds and had 17 steals while forcing 29 SVU turnovers. The Knights shot 48.1% from the floor and stayed in the game with their three-point accuracy, going 10-for-19 (52.6%) from the arch. They also went 12-for-22 (54.5%) from the free throw line.
Sager (Edinburg, Va.) had 25 points on 7-for-11 shooting from the floor and 11-for-13 from the charity stripe. He also had six rebounds, two assists, and four steals. Whiting added 20 points, four boards, two assists, and seven steals while shooting 8-for-11 from the floor. Sophomore Brad Parkes (Winchester, Va.) had 16 points, seven rebounds, and two assists.
Junior Tanner Johnson (Auburn, Wyo.) had 26 points, including 22 in the second half, to help keep the Knights in the game. He went 9-for-15 from the floor and hit 4-of-5 three-pointers. Junior Joseph Lovell (Leamington, Utah) had 16 points while sophomore Tyler Proctor (Salt Lake City, Utah) added 11. Junior Brett Schroeder (Sandy, Utah) contributed 10 points, four assists, and five steals.
EMU will travel to Bridgewater, Va. on Saturday to face the Eagles of Bridgewater College at 7 p.m.
Newspaper Box Score Southern Virginia vs Eastern Mennonite 01/18/06 7:00pm at Harrisonburg, Va. At Harrisonburg, Va. EASTERN MENNONITE 86, SOUTHERN VIRGINIA 74 SOUTHERN VIRGINIA (8-13) JOHNSON, Tanner 9-15 4-5 26; LOVELL, Joseph 5-8 4-8 16; PROCTOR, Ty 4-10 0-1 11; SCHROEDER, Brett 3-9 3-4 10; FAUMUINA-EZE,Uchenna 3-3 0-0 6; TONGA, Steve 1-1 1-4 3; MANN,Nathaniel 1-1 0-0 2; BERGESON, Matt 0-2 0-0 0; LOUDER, Aaron 0-2 0-0 0; GENTRY, Cameron 0-3 0-0 0; FARNSWORTH, Dillon 0-0 0-0 0; DAVIS, Tim 0-0 0-0 0; LISONBEE, Matthew 0-0 0-0 0. Totals 26-54 12-22 74. EASTERN MENNONITE (8-8) SAGER, Jason 7-11 11-13 25; WHITING, Korey 8-11 4-4 20; PARKES, Brad 4-8 8-12 16; ARRINGTON, E.J. 4-9 1-2 9; BAILEY, Corey 1-3 5-6 7; DYER, Earl 1-3 3-4 5; PARRISH, LeRoger 0-3 2-2 2; GALYON, Dustin 0-0 2-2 2; FITZGERALD,Chancelor 0-1 0-0 0; BROWN, Dalany 0-0 0-0 0; LYONS, Jered 0-2 0-0 0. Totals 25-51 36-45 86. Southern Virginia............. 27 47 - 74 Eastern Mennonite............. 32 54 - 86 3-point goals-Southern Virginia 10-19 (JOHNSON, Tanner 4-5; PROCTOR, Ty 3-7; LOVELL, Joseph 2-2; SCHROEDER, Brett 1-3; BERGESON, Matt 0-1; GENTRY, Cameron 0-1), Eastern Mennonite 0-8 (SAGER, Jason 0-1; WHITING, Korey 0-2; ARRINGTON, E.J. 0-2; PARRISH, LeRoger 0-1; LYONS, Jered 0-2). Fouled out--Southern Virginia-LOUDER, Aaron; SCHROEDER, Brett, Eastern Mennonite-None. Rebounds-Southern Virginia 33 (GENTRY, Cameron 6; LOUDER, Aaron 6), Eastern Mennonite 35 (ARRINGTON, E.J. 7; PARKES, Brad 7). Assists-Southern Virginia 14 (LOUDER, Aaron 6), Eastern Mennonite 15 (GALYON, Dustin 5). Total fouls-Southern Virginia 31, Eastern Mennonite 19. A-411