EMORY, Va. – The Emory & Henry College Men's Basketball Team (3-20, 1-13 ODAC) snapped its 20-game losing streak on Monday evening with a 78-74 thrilling victory over visiting Guilford College (16-7, 10-4 ODAC) at Bob Johnson Court. The contest was originally scheduled to be played on Wednesday, February 12 but last week's winter storm forced its postponement.

The two squads battled through five ties in the first 6:41 of the game to an 11-11 score. Emory & Henry scored six straight for a 17-11 lead and pushed the margin to 21-14 moments later. The Quakers closed the gap to two (23-21) and answered each of the Wasps' runs for the remainder of the first half, hitting a three at the buzzer for a 35-35 tie score at the break.

Coming out of the intermission, E&H was firing on all cylinders as it scored 14 of the first 18 points of the second half. The Quakers got the deficit to three (51-48) thanks to seven points from Trever Hyatt, but the Wasps pushed back for their largest lead of the game (62-51) with 7:29 on the clock. GC surged back with a 10-1 run, but would get no closer than two points. Emory & Henry made eight of its 10 free throws in the final 90 seconds of the game to seal the victory, 78-74.

E&H freshman guard Ryan Gravley (Austinville, Va.) had a stellar night, scoring 21 points for a team-high, and adding four rebounds and three assists. Senior forward Charles Smith (Fayetteville, N.C.) was six-for-seven from the field for 17 points and nabbed seven boards while freshman forward Brandon Self (Norfolk, Va.) had 11 points and 10 rebounds to complete the double-double. 

As a team, Emory & Henry shot 56.3 percent (27-for-48) from the field including a 15-of-23 (65.2%) clip in the second half. Though they struggled from the line for most of the game, the Wasps hit free throws when it mattered to earn the win. E&H also held a 43-26 rebounding advantage and a 9-0 margin on second chance points.

Hyatt led the charge for Guilford with 25 points while Matt McCarthy had 21 points, two rebounds and three steals. Alston Furr and Jake Hopkins notched nine points each as Hopkins pulled down seven rebounds. The Quakers were 41.1 percent (23-for-56) for the game and committed only nine turnovers compared to 17 for the Wasps.

Emory & Henry will have its final home game of the season on Wednesday at 7:00 p.m. as Roanoke College visits the John Rutledge King Center.

---E&H---

- photo courtesy of Caleb Johnston, E&H '15