By Rob Daniels
GREENSBORO, N.C. – UNCG pulled within five points with just over six minutes remaining on a jumper from the corner, but Richmond held on late to repel the Spartans' bid for their first win of the season Wednesday, 63-53.
The Spartans challenged a prominent program for the third straight game and turned in their best defensive effort of the year but were unable to break through.
"We were pretty good in a 15-minute increment there," coach Mike Dement said. "The tough thing is dealing with the overall business. The coaches see us getting a little better defensively and getting more movement offensively."
Richmond, which has beaten Arizona State and No. 14 Purdue so far, was limited to 37.5 percent shooting by the 0-11 Spartans.
The Spiders (9-3) made their first 12 free-throw attempts of the second half and operated a free-flowing offense against which UNCG struggled to rebound at times.
In a decisive stretch, Richmond converted three Spartan miscues into transition baskets and expanded a four-point halftime lead to a 42-31 edge on Kevin Smith's layup with 12:24 left.
UNCG made a run and closed the gap to 53-48 on Korey Van Dussen's jumper from the corner at the 6:06 mark. That was as close as it got.
"They're a seasoned team," Dement said of the Spiders, whose rotation has five seniors. "And you could see that in the last four minutes. It was tough for us to get a shot."
Freshman guard Trevis Simpson turned in another great performance for the second straight game of his young career, a 14-point, 23-minute performance that led the Spartans.
His 3-pointer from the right corner made it 57-51 with 4:18 left, but on Richmond's next trip down the court, an offensive rebound prolonged the possession and took valuable time off the clock.
"Get a stop," Van Dussen said. "If we come down and finish the play with a rebound, ..."
Aloysius Henry, limited to 29 minutes by leg cramps, finished with 12 points and 10 rebounds.
For their next test, the Spartans host No. 1 Duke on Dec. 29.
"It will be interesting to play the No. 1 team in the country," Dement said.
AGATE
Richmond 63, UNCG 53
RICHMOND (9-3)
HARPER, Justin 5-14 6-8 17; ANDERSON, Kevin 3-10 4-6 12; GERIOT, Dan 3-10 4-5 11; BROTHERS, Darien 3-6 2-3 8; SMITH, Kevin 2-2 2-2 6; LINDSAY, Cedrick 1-4 0-0 3; WILLIAMS, Derrick 0-0 2-2 2; DUINKER, Josh 0-0 2-2 2; MARTEL, Francis 1-2 0-0 2; BILLINGS, Liam 0-0 0-0 0; GARRETT, Darrius 0-0 0-0 0. Totals 18-48 22-28 63.
UNCG (0-11)
SIMPSON, Trevis 6-9 0-1 14; HENRY, Aloysius 4-8 4-8 12; BRACKETT, Aaron 4-6 2-2 10; RANDALL, Kyle 2-10 2-2 7; EVANS, Brandon 2-5 2-2 6; VAN DUSSEN, Korey 2-8 0-0 4; HENEGAR, Cody 0-0 0-0 0; COLE, Brian 0-0 0-0 0; PARKER, Drew 0-0 0-0 0; WILLIAMS, David 0-3 0-2 0. Totals 20-49 10-17 53.
Richmond...................... 27 36 - 63
UNCG.......................... 23 30 - 53
3-point goals--Richmond 5-17 (ANDERSON, Kevin 2-7; HARPER, Justin 1-6; LINDSAY, Cedrick 1-1; GERIOT, Dan 1-2; BROTHERS, Darien 0-1), UNCG 3-11 (SIMPSON, Trevis 2-2; RANDALL, Kyle 1-3; EVANS, Brandon 0-1; VAN DUSSEN, Korey 0-4; WILLIAMS, David 0-1). Fouled out--Richmond-None, UNCG-None. Rebounds--Richmond 30 (HARPER, Justin 8), UNCG 36 (HENRY, Aloysius 10). Assists--Richmond 11 (GERIOT, Dan 3), UNCG 12 (RANDALL, Kyle 4). Total fouls--Richmond 16, UNCG 21. Technical fouls--Richmond-None, UNCG-None. A-2317
- UNCG -
