The Rams (6-6, 3-3 MEC) suffered a 78-69 road loss to the Cavaliers (3-9, 1-5 MEC) of UVa-Wise Thursday afternoon.
In the first half of play, the Rams kept great pace with the Cavaliers. Leading 36-35 at the break, the Rams were looking to leave right off where they left off with their high-scoring road victory over Concord Tuesday evening. Despite shooting just 36.84 percent in the first half, the Rams did make six three-pointers, forcing the Cavaliers’ defense to respect them from distance.
While the offense performed well for the Rams, they lost the game on the defensive end. Allowing the Cavaliers to shoot 52.8 percent as a team from the field really put them in a hole that they were unable to overcome. Whether it was from inside the paint (38 points allowed) or from three-point territory (9 three-pointers allowed), the Cavaliers dictated what they were doing to the Rams’ defense.
Shooting 39.7 percent from the field for the game was not near enough to make up for the Rams’ defensive woes. Their three-point shooting kept them in the game in the first half, but when the Rams proved unable to convert from distance in the second half (8-of-34 for the game), the Cavaliers took advantage and built their commanding lead.
The volume of turnovers the Cavaliers committed, however, led to 21 Rams’ points. For as good as they were doing offensively, the Cavaliers kept kicking themselves after these self-inflicted actions.
In spite of all the Rams’ struggles, a three-pointer by sophomore guard Gavin McTavish of the Rams cut the Cavaliers’ lead to 68-63 with 2:45 to play.
In the end, however, the Rams’ defense could not stop Dimitri Sousa of the Cavaliers, as he put the exclamation point on the game by converting a layup with 11 seconds remaining that increased the Cavaliers’ lead to eight.
Sousa’s 20-point performance certainly helped the Cavaliers’ cause, but teammate Taiwo Badmus had an amazing night. Posting a double-double, the Rams proved unable to contain him all night long, as he dropped 30 points and 11 rebounds. He was a persistent threat that made his presence felt for the whole duration of the game.
The Cavaliers’ defense really defended star junior guard Steffen Davis of the Rams. He did have 13 points, but the Cavaliers’ defense forced him into tough shots, making him finish 4-of-13 on his field goal attempts.
Junior guard Skylar Roman of the Rams paid great contributions with 15 points. Sophomore forward Gavin McTavish poured in 12 points to help keep the Rams in the shootout.
Two Rams in particular had very special performances. Junior forward AJ Carr hurt the Cavaliers in numerous facets of the game, as he posted 18 points, nine rebounds, and three assists. Also, with his nine points in the contest, senior guard Naim Muhammad went over the 1,000 point plateau for his career. As of now, he has 1,002 points in his tenure at Shepherd.
The Rams hit the court again next when they face West Virginia State University at home Sunday afternoon at 4 p.m. It will also be Smallwood & Small Insurance Day and Meet the Rams Day.
Anthony Bracken is the Sports Editor of The Picket. He can be reached at abrack02@rams.shepherd.edu
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