W&M Men’s Basketball Defeats UNC Greensboro, 83-73

Calvin Baker, Nathan Mann Lead Tribe With 19 Points Each

12/21/05 10:19PM

WILLIAMSBURG, VA - Freshman guard Calvin Baker (Newport News, VA) and sophomore guard Nathan Mann (Overland Park, KS) led four William and Mary players in double figures with 19 points each, as the Tribe men’s basketball team defeated UNC Greensboro, 83-73, tonight at Kaplan Arena.

The win improves W&M’s record to 5-4, while the Spartans fall to 7-5.

UNCG’s Kevin Oleksiak led all scorers with 21 points, his third 20-point game of the season, while Ricky Hickman added 18 and Kyle Hines had 15 for the Spartans. For the Tribe, junior forward Corey Cofield (Newton, MA) came off the bench for 14 points (shooting 6-6 from the field and 2-2 from the line) and six rebounds in 24 minutes, while sophomore forward Laimis Kisielius (Vilnius, Lithuania) added 12 points. Senior center Brian Hutt (Denver, CO) pulled down a game and career-high 11 rebounds to go with his five points.

A three-pointer by Hickman gave the Spartans a 13-8 lead less than five minutes into the game, but the Tribe used a 13-2 run, ending with a pair of free throws by Cofield, to go ahead, 21-15, with 10:04 on the clock. W&M held its lead throughout the period, going ahead by as many as eight points, before heading into halftime leading, 40-35.

The Green and Gold put the game away early in the second half, outscoring the Spartans 15-2 in the first four minutes of the period to go ahead by 18, 55-37. Baker keyed the drive, scoring 10 of his 16 second-half points during the stretch, while also making two steals and adding an assist. A layup by Hickman and a three-point play by Matt Akinosho brought UNCG within single digits, 77-68, with 1:39 to play, but Baker made both of his free throws on the next two consecutive possessions to put the Tribe up by 13, 81-68. Hines scored a layup with 23 seconds remaining and the Tribe held onto the ball throughout its last possession for the final score of 83-73.

W&M shot 53.6 percent (30-56) from the field, making nine of its 18 three-point attempts. UNCG shot 44.4 percent (28-63) overall and 9-of-21 (.429) from long range. The Spartans out-rebounded the Tribe, 34-33.

W&M’s next game is at Virginia Tech on Tuesday, December 27 at 7:00 PM. UNCG’s next contest will be against top-ranked Duke on Saturday, December 31 at 1:00 PM at the Greensboro Coliseum.

Box Score


Post-Game Quotes from William and Mary Head Coach Tony Shaver
“Senior Brian Hutt was pretty sensational. He had 11 rebounds, only scored five points for us, but his rebounding was terrific and he really did a great job on Kyle Hines, their star inside.”

“We got more transition baskets off of our defense, which is awfully important for us, and we did it against a quality team. We did it against some good quick guards out there. I thought one thing we did better tonight offensively is when we didn’t get that transition basket, we showed more poise and patience with the basketball. We made that extra pass when we needed to. We’ve been working very hard on, when we don’t get the primary break, on being more patient with the ball. I thought our shot selection was much better tonight and we made the extra pass, which is very important for us.”

“[Nathan Mann] shot the ball pretty well [6-of-9 overall and 5-of-7 from three], but the key was good shots. He took good shots and Calvin [Baker] and Adam Payton created shots for him. I thought Calvin did a better job of creating for his teammates to-night.”