Game Box Score

BRIDGEWATER, VA (January 7, 2006)—Hampden-Sydney College sophomore forward Troy Kaase (Roanoke, VA/Cave Spring) scored a career-high 28 points and pulled down a game-high seven rebounds to lead the 15^th-ranked (D3hoops.com) Tigers to a 65-55 road victory over Old Dominion Athletic Conference foe Bridgewater Saturday afternoon.  With the win the Tigers remain unbeaten at 10-0 overall and 4-0 in conference action, while the Eagles drop to 4-7 and 1-4. 

Kaase connected on 12-of-15 from the floor and sank 4-of-5 from the free throw line, while scoring 20 of his 28 points in the second half to lead the Tigers to the victory.  Drew Prehmus (Atlanta, GA/Wesleyan Academy) added 12 points to give the Tigers a pair of players in double figures in scoring. 

The game was a back-and-forth battle for much of the opening nine minutes of action as both teams swapped the lead on numerous occasions before Prehmus drilled a three-pointer with 10:25 to play to snap a 14 all tie and put the Tigers in the driver’s seat.  Jay Strotman scored on a layup on Bridgewater’s end to cut the Tiger lead to one, but Hampden-Sydney went on a 15-4 run over the next eight-plus minutes to take a 34-20 lead. 

The Tigers quickly pushed their lead to 15 points, 38-23, on Prehmus’ only field goal of the second half at the 19:16 mark.  Bridgewater battled back as forwards Clay Michael, Josh Fox and Zach Butler got into the scoring act to help whittle the lead down to eight points, 44-36, with 13:27 to play, while a Josh Maupin jumper with 7:29 remaining sliced the Tiger advantage to six, 53-47.  

However, there was too much Troy Kaase on the Hampden-Sydney end as the sophomore kept the Eagles in check as he had stretches in which he scored ten straight and eight straight points for the Tigers.  Junior guard Matt Green (Richmond, VA/Thomas Dale) and Prehmus then put the game out-of-reach with perfection at the free throw line over the final 1:52 of action. 

Clay Michael led the Eagles with 12 points, while Josh Fox and Josh Maupin each added ten.  Overall, the Tigers shot 52.2 percent (24-for-46) from the floor, connected on 36 percent (5-of-14) from beyond the arc and sank 80 percent (12-of-15) of their free throws in the contest, while out-rebounding the Eagles, 26-23.  Bridgewater shot 48 percent (22-for-46) from the floor, 30 percent (3-for-10) from beyond the arc and made 67 percent (8-for-12) of its shots from the charity stripe. 

Hampden-Sydney looks to remain unbeaten Monday night, January 9, as the Tigers host Eastern Mennonite University at 7 pm in S. Douglas Fleet Gymnasium.  The game will be broadcast live on FM 95.7 WFLO and on the internet at www.hsc.edu/athletics.