The Richmond Spiders out-toughed the Howard Bison this evening and won the first of four games in the Gothic Classic tournament 54-41. Despite the Howard run at the end of the first half, Richmond built a big enough lead to hold them off going into their respective locker rooms.
Sophomore guard ShawnDre’ Jones was the only Spider who scored in double digits. He had 11 points and added two steals as well as two assists. Jones was confident in his three-pointer tonight and was able to be an effective contributor off the bench.
Junior forward Terry Allen had nine points and four rebounds. He attacked Howard defenders, finished with contact and and hit all of his foul shots. Deion Taylor, Kendall Anthony and Alonzo Nelson-Ododa all had eight points this evening.
Alonzo Nelson-Ododa had three blocks tonight and made it difficult for any Howard player to a get clear look at the rim. Every shot was contested and Howard players were forced to take difficult shots. Deion Taylor and T.J. Cline also crashed the boards and tallied seven rebounds each.
Richmond was able to capitalize on Howard’s turnovers and crash the boards effectively. In the second half an aggressive Richmond defense forced Howard to shoot 17.4 percent from the field and zero percent from three-point range. Tonight Richmond's rebounding was better than it has been in the past few games but still lost the battle 33-32.
Offensively, Richmond was not as smooth as usual but the team was still able to get the job done. The team had 12 assists on the night and shot the ball 38.1 percent from the field.
Mens basketball's next game is Thursday at 7p.m. as they well face South Alabama in the second Gotham Classic game.