Saturday, Dec. 2, William and Mary men’s basketball (3-6) fell to Richmond (5-3) 88-69 at the Robins Center in Richmond, Va.
William and Mary has just seven players on scholarship, leading to most of the roster playing major minutes for the team. Junior forward Caleb Dorsey played 38 minutes in Friday’s game, with sophomore guards Chase Lowe and Trey Moss each playing 35 minutes. Sophomore forward Charlie Williams played well for the Tribe, scoring a career-high 21 points. Still the Tribe struggled on the stat sheet in the matchup against the home side, as Dorsey, the Tribe’s leading scorer, left halfway through the first half after being poked in the eye. Sophomore guard/forward Jack Karasinski also left the game injured in the second half.
William and Mary started off hot, making a solid 8-0 run to start and giving them an early lead. But the Tribe momentum came to a halt, as Richmond responded with eight straight made shots. Richmond graduate student guard Jordan King scored nine consecutive points, pushing Richmond to a 28-13 lead midway through the half. With six minutes left in the first half, the Tribe found themselves down by 20, thanks to solid Richmond long range shooting. In the first half, William and Mary shot just over 35% in field goals and three pointers, whereas Richmond shot over 60% in both. The first half ended with the Tribe down 48-32.
William and Mary came back after halftime with a 7-2 run, drawing the team within 11 to the home Spiders. But Richmond hit back with a nine point swing. The Spiders extended its lead back to 20 points, putting a Tribe victory out of reach. Though Dorsey and Lowe both recorded double-doubles for the Tribe, and Williams went 5-9 from beyond the arc to contribute to his 21 points on the night, the deficit was too great. King led Richmond with 5-8 shooting from beyond the arc to contribute to his 29 points. Richmond secured the victory in a decisive win, the second half concluding with a final score of 88-69.
On the night, William and Mary went 24-62 on field goal attempts, where Richmond went 34-62. The Tribe out-rebounded Richmond, recording 36 rebounds on the night, whereas the Spiders grabbed 35.
William and Mary will host Old Dominion on Wednesday, Dec. 6 at Kaplan Arena in Williamsburg, Va.