The University of Mary Washington men's basketball team dropped a 63-58 decision to 11th ranked Randolph-Macon College on Sunday at the Anderson Center, despite 17 points from sophomore John Lutkenhaus and 12 from sophomore Brent Mahoney. The Eagles fall to 0-2 on the season.
The Eagles, one day after falling in their opener to Lynchburg, came out inspired on Sunday, trading blows with the nationally-ranked Yellow Jackets for 40 minutes. After falling behind, 5-0, early, the Eagles tied the score at eight, thanks in large part to six points from Mahoney.
A pair of Lutkenhaus free throws built the Eagle lead to 15-12 with 15:33 remaining, but the Yellow Jackets answered with seven straight points to take a 19-15 advantage. The Jackets led, 22-17, with 8:08 left in the half, but a three pointer from senior Taylor Johnson and a basket and free throw from junior Ty Thurston gave UMW a 23-22 lead.
A pair of Mahoney free throws and a Lutkenhaus bucket gave UMW a four-point lead at 27-23 with 4:46 left, but RMC scored five straight to regain the lead. The Eagles trailed by just one just before intermission, but a last-second layup gave the visitors a 35-32 lead at halftime.
In the second half, the Eagles started with a 13-0 run and took a 10-point lead at 45-35 with 11:5 left. An 8-0 RMC run tied the score at 51 with 5:30 to go, and another 10-2 run by the Yellow Jackets gave the Eagles a 61-53 deficit with just 23 seconds left. A three pointer from Curtis Rowser III cut the deficit to four, but UMW would draw no closer in the 63-58 defeat.
"I'm very proud of our team's effort", said UMW head coach Marcus Kahn. "The guys did a great job of responding after last night's game. This will be a learning experience and stepping stone moving forward."
Lutkenhaus was 5-11 from the floor and 7-9 from the free throw line en route to his 17 points that led all scorers. Mahoney shot 4-10 for his 12 points, and Johnson grabbed a team-high seven rebounds, with Mahoney adding six.
The Eagles shot 40.8% from the field, making three three pointers and went 15-25 from the free throw line. RMC shot 45.1% with seven three pointers and was 10-17 from the line. RMC led in rebounding, 36-28.
The Eagles will return to action on Friday when they visit Shenandoah University in the South Region Challenge at 7:00 p.m.