November 22, 2008
W&L Drops Shoremen at Buzzer, 76-74
McHugh Spoils Washington's Opener with Winning Three-Pointer

CHESTERTOWN, MD – Chris McHugh banked in a 28-foot three-pointer at the buzzer to lift visiting Washington and Lee to a 76-74 non-conference men's basketball victory over host Washington College this afternoon in Cain Athletic Center. The Generals improved to 2-2 on the season with the win, while the Shoremen dropped their season opener.

McHugh's winning bucket came after he was freed by a screen from Zac White, reversing the Generals' fortunes from the previous play when Washington senior guard Tim Kohlrus (Fairfax, VA/W.T. Woodson) nailed a 26-foot three-pointer to give the Shoremen a 74-73 lead. Six-tenths of a second remained on the clock after Kohlrus's triple, but the officials put three seconds of time back on the clock.

Neither team led by more than five points throughout the first half as a jumper by Kohlrus with one second left in the period gave the Shoremen a 37-34 advantage at the break.

The Generals led by as many as 10 points in the second half after opening the period on a 19-6 run. The Shoremen used a 10-2 run, capped off by a three-pointer by junior forward Alan Kines (Towson, MD/Towson) with 1:00 remaining to knot the score at 69-69. A pair of free throws by Brian Goetsch on the other end gave W&L a 71-69 lead with 38 seconds remaining, but a lay-up by WC freshman guard Kevin Breslin (Hagerstown, MD/St. Maria Goretti) with 17 seconds to play again knotted the score, this time at 71-71. A Kirk Jones jumper in the lane with 6.4 seconds to go put the Generals back in front with seven seconds left, setting up the long three-pointer by Kohlrus and McHugh to end the game.

Ben Heller paced the Generals with 16 points in 20 minutes off the bench, while Goetsch tallied 15 points and White contributed 14 points, a team-high six rebounds, and a game-high six blocked shots.

Kohlrus led all scorers with 23 points and also pulled down a game-high eight rebounds and dished out a game-best four assists. Junior guard Andrew Chambers (Williamsport, MD/St. Maria Goretti) added 19 points, while Kines finished with 12. Freshman guard Sal Schittino (Ellicott City, MD/Loyola Blakefield) scored eight points in the loss with six of them coming in the final two minutes.

W&L shot 62% from the field in the game, including 72% in the second half. Washington shot 40% from the field in the loss. W&L held a 32-30 edge on the boards, but the Shoremen held a 17-8 advantage on the offensive glass and committed 10 fewer turnovers than the Generals (13 to 23).

The Shoremen return to action Tuesday when they host Stevenson at 7:30 p.m. in a first round game of the Provident Pride of Maryland Tournament.

BOX SCORE