ROANOKE TIMES
Copyright (c) 1996, Roanoke Times
DATE: Monday, February 5, 1996 TAG: 9602050104
SECTION: SPORTS PAGE: B-1 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: DAN UTHMAN STAFF WRITER
Roanoke College and Hampden-Sydney have taken turns being the toast of Old Dominion Athletic Conference men's basketball in recent years.
On Sunday, it was Roanoke's turn. The Maroons dispatched the Tigers 85-78 in a game that had all the elements of this still-growing rivalry.
``We've had a lot of big games lately,'' said Tony Shaver, Hampden-Sydney's coach.
``For the last two years, we've been two of the top teams in the league,'' said Page Moir, Shaver's Roanoke counterpart. ``It was a huge game all the way around.''
Although the Tigers were fighting their way up the conference standings, it was the Maroons who had more on the line.
First, they had the chance to move into first place in the league with a victory. Second, Hampden-Sydney had won the past three meetings, including an 82-68 decision Jan.27.
When the final horn sounded Sunday, Roanoke had taken care of both.
``We put a lot on'' this game, Moir said. ``We have something to play for now.''
Roanoke (15-4 overall, 10-4 ODAC) is tied with Randolph-Macon for first place in the league. Hampden-Sydney (12-8, 7-7) is sixth.
If the season were to end today, the Maroons would get the ODAC tournament's top seed by virtue of their season sweep of Randolph-Macon.
While the Maroons reached their two goals, Shaver pointed to two factors in explaining his team's downfall. ``No.1, they were the aggressive team today,'' he said of Roanoke. ``No.2, we did a poor job executing on both ends of the floor.''
The Maroons, however, did a poor job executing at the free-throw line, keeping the final outcome hazy to the last minute.
Roanoke was up by eight points with less than five minutes to play when Jon Maher and Nathan Hungate each missed the front end of a one-and-one opportunity.
Meanwhile, Hampden-Sydney kept scoring and whittling away at the lead.
It didn't help that Roanoke made only two field goals in the final three minutes. One came with five seconds left, but the other really meant something.
Northside High School graduate Nathan Hungate, the main object of the Tigers fans' taunts, drove to the left side of the hoop and dropped in a bank shot while being checked to the floor by Hampden-Sydney forward Nate Schwab.
Not only did Hungate's basket and free throw push Roanoke's lead from five to eight points, but it gave Schwab, a preseason Division III All-America selection, his fourth foul. He later fouled out.
``That might have been the key play,'' said Moir, who gave Hungate a pack of M&M's for his trouble.
Hungate's workday wasn't over after the three-point play. He kept going back to the free-throw line, and he kept making them. That was in contrast with the Maroons as a whole, as they made 30 free throws and also missed 15.
``He pulled out about four in a row to get us out of it,'' said Roanoke shooting guard Jason Bishop.
``We would have finished them off a bit better if we would have made our foul shots,'' Moir said.
Bishop lent Hungate a hand when the Tigers mounted their final assault. Shaver put the ball and the game firmly in the hands of senior guard Ryan Odom.
Schwab already had fouled out and Odom had the hottest hand, not to mention the experience of seven NCAA Division III Tournament games.
He scored six of Hampden-Sydney's final 11 points, but just as memorable were his shots that were swatted by Bishop and Michael Ball, nice plays that finally fended off the Tigers.
``We had a battle from the very beginning,'' Bishop said of his matchup with Odom.
Odom, with his father, Wake Forest coach Dave Odom, watching in the stands, scored 21 points and had five assists to lead Hampden-Sydney. Schwab added 16 points and eight rebounds.
Salem High School alumnus Kevin Garst added 10 points and nine rebounds for the Tigers, but it wasn't enough.
``The thing the team struggled with a little bit was we were too much two-fisted,'' Shaver said, speaking of the Tigers' reliance on Odom and Schwab. ``When we have better balance, we're a fine team. Two weapons are not enough in this league.''
Center Tim Braun once again was a heavy weapon for the Maroons, providing an early punch. He had a game-high 23 points, 19 of them in the first half.
Hungate had another double-double with 14 points and 10 assists (his second consecutive 10-assist performance) and Bishop added 13 points.
Roanoke still has four conference games to play in the next seven days, three on the road, but they come against the bottom four teams in the league standings.
``It's nice to have our destiny in our hands,'' Moir said. ``We understand it's not going to be easy, but it's fun to play games every other day.''
NOTE: Please see microfilm for scores.
LENGTH: Medium: 97 lines ILLUSTRATION: PHOTO: ERIC BRADY/Staff. 1. Roanoke's Tim Braun is fouled byby CNBHampden-Sydney's Nate Schwab in Sunday's game at the Bast Center.
color. 2. Roanoke's Kevin Sigafoes (24) drives on Hamden-Sydney's
David Hobbs in first-half action Sunday at the Bast Center. KEYWORDS: BASKETBALL