BC Avoids Upset from Richmond with 78-73 OT Win

This one was much more interesting at the end than Jim Christian and the Eagles would have liked, but BC was able to avoid a devastating upset by Richmond in overtime. The team got off to an uncharacteristically crisp start to the game. The offense put up a balanced attack, with drives to the basket setting up wide open 3s from Jordan Chatman and putting Eagles up 11-3 in the first five minutes. Chatman would sink 4 of 7 3FG in the opening half.

The early lead allowed Jim Christian to give some different lineups a look. As the half wound down, BC had played nine players and saw eight contribute points. Vin Baker Jr. was a mixed bag as he often has been so far. On one offensive possession he airmailed a 3 that missed by at least a foot, then immediately stole the inbound pass on a hustle play. Avery Wilson and Luka Kraljevic both got lost on defense a bit, but looked unafraid to take shots on offense. JC Reyes appeared cold, and was 0 for 2 from the field on the afternoon with 1 defensive rebound. With Jerome Robinson playing only seven first half minutes after picking up 2 personal fouls, BC still was able to take a 6 point lead into halftime.

Subs were much more limited in the second half; Kraljevic and Reyes were the only bench players to see three and two minutes respectively. Ky Bowman, Robinson, and Chatman provided most of the offense in the second half, combing to go 8 for 16. The lead hovered around 10 for the first ten minutes of the half, but sloppy defense and turnovers let Richmond pull within 1 with four minutes to play. With BC and Richmond trading leads as time ticked down, the Eagles had a chance to win it on the final possession but Steffon Mitchell missed an open 3 and the game went to overtime.

The Eagles took the lead on a Chatman 3 with 3:23 left in overtime and did not relinquish it again. Bowman hit a clutch 3 on the next possession and Chatman closed the game with a pair of free throws. Chatman led all scorers with 30 points, 10 for 16 FG, and 7 for 10 3FG.

Rebounding was a real issue; the Spiders grabbed 15 offensive rebounds. Mitchell was strong on the boards (10 rebounds), but the team was outrebounded by Richmond 46 – 35. Christian will need to address the standing around and watching going on near the basket that was too prevalent for a team heading into ACC play. The defense also broke down a bit, allowing some wide open 3 and giving up weak fouls inside down the stretch. Nevertheless, the Eagles were able to stay focused and pull out the overtime win and head into Christmas with a 10-3 record. They will have a week of rest and preparation before a tough test next at Virginia next Saturday.