Missed shots lead to Richmond loss against Davidson

In a Monday night game between two of the Atlantic-10’s top offenses, the Richmond men’s basketball team couldn't make enough shots against Davidson.

It seemed as though the weather wasn’t the only thing freezing up, as Richmond went 0-15 from 3-point territory and lost 78-70, falling to a 2-4 conference record.

While the Wildcats were converting their shots, the Spiders struggled to find their rhythm as they failed to make early shot attempts. Missed shots seemed to be a first-half theme for the Spiders and they quickly fell to a double-digit deficit.

“We shot the ball well in practice," Richmond forward T.J. Cline said. "To be honest, they just didn’t fall today.” 

The Spiders did begin to show some fight with a string of four consecutive possessions. With each successful shot, the crowd’s volume increased, along with the Spider’s confidence. At one point toward the end of the first half, Terry Allen made five straight shots, tightening up the halftime score.

Despite the Spiders' misfortune from beyond the 3-point line, they managed to hang with Davidson by shooting two more shots than the Wildcats. The sheer amount of baskets made by the Spiders, especially low post shots from Cline, allowed Richmond to take the lead midway through the second half.

Richmond’s early scoring woes returned as they continued to miss 3-pointers, and Davidson took advantage by posting successful 3-pointers of their own to retake the lead.

The Wildcats would not relinquish their hold on the lead again, and time would expire with a final score of 78-70 in Davidson’s favor.

For most of the game the momentum appeared to be with the Spiders, but missing 15 3-point shots without a make brought about Richmond's demise.

“To withstand a game where you shoot poorly, you have to be able to defend very well,” Richmond coach Chris Mooney said.

The Spiders will try to reverse their shooting misfortunes in their next game – a conference game against George Washington on Thursday.

“We need to have some urgency in how we prepare, urgency in the way we start games, urgency in everything,” Mooney said.

Contact sports editor Charlie Broaddus at charlie.broaddus@richmond.edu