ASHLAND, Va. – EMU had a tall task in front of it Tuesday night, as they traveled south to take on the nation's top team, Randolph-Macon.

The Royals fell behind by 18 in the first half, kept it closer in the second half but ultimately fell to the Yellow Jackets, 55-82. The loss drops EMU to 5-7 overall and 3-2 in the ODAC. 

Highlights

• RMC jumped out to an early 6-0 lead before EMU was able to get on the board. At the 18:00 mark, Tim Jones drove to the basket and laid it in, cutting into the lead. The basket also put Jones over 1,000 points for his career. Randolph-Macon added a bucket to pull back ahead by six but four straight from Jones brought EMU within two. The two teams traded baskets until with RMC leading 15-10, Mizz Nyagwegwe drilled a three to pull back within two.
• After EMU pulled within two, the Yellow Jacket's offense started to heat up as they went on a 17-5 run to go ahead 32-15 at 5:53. Layups from Landon Swingler and Kobi Alexander sandwiched an RMC basket but the Jackets finished the half on a 12-4 run to take a 44-26 lead into the break.
• The Royals started the second half on a 5-2 run with points from Burkholder and Jones to pull EMU to within 13 and forcing an RMC timeout. Out of the break, Randolph-Macon scored but that was followed up by an Aviwe Mahlong layup to cut RMC's lead to 48-35. The Yellow Jackets then went on a 7-0 run to extend their lead to 55-35 before Kobi Alexander put a stop to the run with a jump shot. The Royals offense would continue to knock down shots but RMC seemed to have an answer everytime, showing why they're the top ranked team in the country, and EMU wasn't able to cut into the lead. After being outscored by 18 in the first half, EMU was able to keep it within nine in the second frame. For the game, the Royals shot 49% from the field. 
• EMU was led by Nyagwegwe with 13, his second highest scoring performance of the season, and Burkholder, who also had 13. It was the seniors third straight game scoring in double figures. Jones added 11, his tenth double-digit scoring performance of the season.

Tim Jones' 1,000th Career Point

What's Next

EMU will be back at Yoder Arena on Saturday as they continue ODAC play with a matchup against Guilford. Tipoff is scheduled for 4:30 pm. 

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