The men’s basketball team won its sixth straight game Saturday afternoon, defeating the Randolph College (Va.) Wildcats 77-56 in the first round of the NCAA Division III tournament.

With the win, the Eagles’ record improved to 20-6 on the season. This was Emory’s first NCAA tournament game since 1990.

“This was a long time coming – 23 years,” Head Coach Jason Zimmerman said. “To win a game in the tournament is really special for our guys. I want the guys to enjoy the win, but we are not done yet.”

The game started off slowly for the Eagles, with Randolph taking a 9-4 lead while the Eagles made just one of their first 11 shots.

“The first four minutes was a feeling out process,” Zimmerman said. “After that, our guys were very effective.”

The Eagles soon caught fire, and made 13 of their next 23 shots. With 10:17 left in the first half, they took the lead at 16-15.

Over the next four minutes the Eagles took control of the game, sinking five of their seven shots while going on a 12-0 run, extending their lead to 28-15.

“The defense set the tone, and we made some shots,” Zimmerman said. “If we want to win, we have to play well defensively.”

The Wildcats would go on to sink two free throws to draw within 12 points with just under two minutes left in the first half, but the Eagles responded with five quick points to end the half.

Sophomore forward Alex Foster drained a three-pointer, and senior center Michael Friedberg sunk a lay-up.

“We got comfortable, started hitting some shots and broke it open,” Friedberg said. “After the offense started flowing, we took control.”

At halftime, the Eagles held a 41-24 lead.

Despite their lackluster start to the half, they ended the period with a 41.2 percent shooting mark (14 for 34), while holding Randolph to a 32.1 percent mark.

Junior forward Jake Davis led the Eagles’ offense in the first half, scoring 10 points, and sophomore guard Michael Florin added seven points.

The Eagles opened the second half with a 12-0 run, increasing their lead to 53-24 with 16:10 left in the second half.

From this point forward, Randolph never posed a serious threat to the Eagles, who led by as many as 31 points with 11:54 remaining in the game.

Offensively, the Eagles were led by Davis, who scored a total of 25 points in the game, which is equal to his second highest total all year. He was nine for 19 shooting, including two three-pointers. This was his 21st double-figure scoring game of the year and his 11th with 20 points or more.

“Davis will get you double-figures and is really hard to guard,” Zimmerman said. “He is solid; a staple for us.”

Other offensive leaders included Florin and Friedberg, each of whom contributed 10 points to the victory. Florin also dished out seven assists, and Friedberg delivered three blocked shots.

All told on the day, the Eagles recorded a 45.3 percent success rate in field goal shooting, sinking 29 of 64 attempts.

They also pulled down 42 rebounds, compared to 35 by Randolph. The Eagles were led in this category by senior guard Alex Greven, who claimed seven boards.

Defensively, the Eagles held Randolph to 37.3 percent shooting. They also came up with 15 steals, with Davis contributing five and Florin three, which led to a 19-12 advantage for the Eagles on points off turnovers.

Emory will take the court in the second round of NCAA tournament play on Saturday, March 9.

The Eagles will take on Whitworth College at 10 p.m.

The Emory women’s basketball team defeated Whitworth’s women’s basketball team during the first round of the NCAA tournament this year.

By Bennett Ostdiek 

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The Emory Wheel was founded in 1919 and is currently the only independent, student-run newspaper of Emory University. The Wheel publishes weekly on Wednesdays during the academic year, except during University holidays and scheduled publication intermissions.

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