It was a big night for the Hampden-Sydney Tigers in a number of ways. Not only did they beat the Rowan Profs 91-76, advancing past the Sweet 16 and into the Elite Eight, but some personal records were broken for a number of players. 

Senior team captain Josiah Hardy scored a career-high 20 points, while sophomore Shane Fernald added his own career high 15 points off the bench. Senior captain Adam Brazil also broke through his own milestone, passing the 1,000-point mark. To put that in perspective, in 114 years of basketball at Hampden-Sydney, Brazil is just the 46th player and the second this season to pass that mark. His teammate Davidson Hubbard did it earlier this year. 

The game itself was sold out long before tipoff. In fact, after selling out the available tickets this past Tuesday, when the NCAA put one last group up on Thursday, they sold in a matter of minutes. The max capacity crowd of 1,200 at Kirby Field House was vocal all night long, letting the refs clearly know when they disagreed with calls. And Tigers Head Coach Caleb Kimbrough said he and the team fed off that energy. 

“Being at home, feeding off the crowd is an advantage,” Kimbrough said.

The game itself was never really in question, with Hampden-Sydney taking control early and never letting up. With 10:47 left in the first half, the Tigers led 20-6. By halftime, that had built up to 42-31 and the Profs never got closer than that. With 5:43 left in the game, the Tigers’ lead had increased to 83-68. After that, Hampden-Sydney locked up the win by going 8-8 with free throws over the final two minutes, including 4-4 by Ryan Clements. 

The Profs complete their season with a final record of 21-8 and were led by Danny Fleming with a game-high 25 points off the bench, and Ja’Zere Noel with 23 points.

‘We trust each other and believe’ 

“What an atmosphere tonight!” said Kimbrough. “The crowd definitely helped give us the energy to get it done. I think we showed once again that we are a team with a lot of different weapons. If one man goes down, the next guy will step up. We trust each other and believe. Big win tonight… not done yet!”

Hardy led Hampden-Sydney with his career-high 20 points, including 7-9 on field goals and 6-6 on free throws.

“I was just finishing the plays when teammates passed me the ball,” Hardy said. “We just trust each other so much, honestly, we’re very unpredictable. Anybody can go off any night.”

Clements meanwhile added his 18 points for the Tigers, including 10-11 free throws, along with a game-high seven assists and five rebounds, as well. Fernald contributed his career-high 15 points, including 7-10 field goals, adding three assists. Davidson Hubbard had 14 points, along with a game-high eight rebounds, while Brazil had eight points and four assists. 

The Hampden-Sydney Tigers shot 52% (33-63) from the field, including 20% (3-15) on three-pointers, and an impressive 92% (22-24) at the free throw line. The Garnet & Grey enjoyed a 50-26 advantage in points scored in the paint, and a 23-6 advantage in points scored off turnovers-forcing 15 miscues by the Profs.

Fleming led Rowan with his game-high 25 points off the bench, adding game-highs of eight rebounds and two steals, as well. Noel had his 23 points and a game-high eight rebounds, as well, for the Profs. Rowan shot 43% (23-54) from the field, including 29% (6-21) on three-pointers, and 80% (24-30) at the line-the two teams combined to shoot 54 free throws in the contest.

Up next for Hampden-Sydney Tigers

With the win, Hampden-Sydney improves to 29-2 on the year. The Tigers don’t have long to rest up, as they will take on No. 19 ranked Nebraska Wesleyan University (26-4) later tonight. Tipoff is set for 7 p.m. in Fleet Gym on the Hampden-Sydney campus, with the winner of this game heading to the Final Four in Fort Wayne, Indiana.  

Now comes the big question. Tickets went on sale immediately after Friday night’s game. If you weren’t able to get one then, there will be one more chance. The NCAA will release a very limited number of tickets Saturday at the entrance to Fleet Gym, beginning at 5 p.m.