Game 9 • W&L (0-8, 0-3) vs. Guilford (2-3, 0-2)
December 8, 2004 • 7:00 pm

THE SERIES:
W&L and Guilford will be meeting for the 32nd time, with the Quakers holding an 18-13 advantage in the all-time series. W&L has lost each of its last five home meetings with the Quakers dating back to a 73-67 win over Guilford on Jan. 4, 2000. Oddly enough, the Generals have won five of the last six games against the Quakers in Greensboro, N.C.

SCOUTING GUILFORD:
Guilford is 2-3 overall, 0-2 in the ODAC after falling at Lynchburg, 85-81, in overtime on Saturday afternoon. The Quakers rallied from an eight-point second half deficit to assume a 13-point lead with just over eight minutes remaining in the game. However, Lynchburg took a late lead before junior forward Kevin Smith hit two free throws with 30 seconds remaining to send the game into overtime. From there, the Hornets took control in posting the win. Smith led the Quakers with 18 points in just 24 minutes of action, while junior forward Genaro Lawhorn tallied 16 points and nine rebounds. Guilford held a 43-34 advantage on the boards and shot 48.3 percent from the field, but could not overcome 27 turnovers. For the season. Lawhorn leads the team with averages of 17.8 points and 7.6 rebounds per game. He also shoots 66.1 percent (37-for-56) from the floor. Sophomore guard Thomas Burge averages 11.8 points and 3.0 rebounds per game, while Smith contributes 11.4 points and 3.8 boards per contest.

UP NEXT:
The Generals will break 24 days for exams and the holiday season before returning to the court on Jan. 2-3 when they host the W&L Invitational. Washington College and Marymount will meet in the opening game at 6:00 pm and W&L will host Piedmont in the second game at 8:00 pm. Monday's consolation and championship games will take place at 6:00 and 8:00 pm.

THE HEAD GENERAL:
Adam Hutchinson (Amherst '93) is in his second season as the head coach at Washington and Lee, posting a 7-26 (.212) record with the Generals. Prior to his arrival in Lexington, Hutchinson had coached for two seasons at Case Western Reserve University and two seasons at Stevens Tech. In his six seasons as a head coach, Hutchinson claims a 41-93 (.306) overall record. Hutchinson is assisted by Ryan Kadlubowski (Rochester '03) and Curtis Buxton.

LAST TIME OUT:
Virginia Wesleyan shot 68.8 percent (22-for-32) in the first half en route to a 57-23 halftime advantage in defeating Washington and Lee, 98-61, in ODAC men’s basketball action on Sunday afternoon. The Marlins shot 52.9 percent for the game, including hitting 10-of-15 three-point attempts. VWC also forced 25 W&L turnovers in handing the Generals their eighth-straight loss. W&L was led by freshman forward Greg Bienemann, who totaled 13 points on 6-of-9 shooting from the floor. Freshman forward Femi Kusimo notched 11 points, while freshman center Mason Herman registered a career-high 10 points. Virginia Wesleyan was paced by junior guard Marques Fitch’s 15 points. Sophomore guard Rodney Young added 14 points, while sophomore forward Brandon Adair posted 14 points.

LAST MEETING WITH GUILFORD:
Guilford College won for the ninth time in 10 games with a 79-44 victory over Washington and Lee at the Warner Center. The Quakers led by just seven points (30-23) with 2:05 remaining in the first half, but closed the stanza with an 8-0 run to assume a 38-23 halftime advantage. Guilford then began the second half with a 26-9 run to hand the Generals their worst home loss since the 1993-94 season. W&L, which shot just 28.6 percent for the game, including 20.7 percent in the second half, was led by guard Coleman Lyons, who scored 15 points and grabbed five rebounds. Forward David Will added 10 points and six rebounds. Guilford was led by senior forward Jevon Clarke, who totaled 15 points and five boards. Forward Jamel Taylor notched 12 points and 10 rebounds, while forward Genaro Lawhorn registered 10 points and eight boards.

THREE MAN:
Senior guard Mike Stuart has enjoyed a fine career with the Generals and has continued that fine play this season. Twice he has tied the W&L record for three-pointers in a game (7), doing so as a freshman and again last season. He is fifth all-time with 115 career three-pointers made, and is fifth all-time in three-point attempts (332). A .346 career shooter from beyond the arc, Stuart has hit 14-of-42 attempts (.333) this season.

ROSTER BREAKDOWN:
W&L features 15 players on the 2004-05 roster. This list includes one senior, two juniors, five sophomores and seven freshmen. The 15 players come from 10 different states and have an average height of 6-4 and an average weight of 199 pounds.

STRONG START = STRONG FINISH:
A quick start has been imperative to the Generals winning games. Over the past seven years, W&L is 29-17 (.630) when leading at the half. During that same stretch, W&L has won a total of 42 games, meaning that W&L has led at the break in just over 69 percent of its wins during the last seven years.

KEEP EM' UNDER 60:
People love to see offense, but defense does win games as evidenced by W&L's record in low scoring contests. During the last eight seasons, W&L is 32-16 (.667) when allowing opponents 59 points or less, 0-1 this season.

BIENEMANN THE BETTER MANN:
Freshman forward Greg Bienemann is also off to a solid collegiate career. Bienemann is averaging 9.2 points, 3.1 rebounds and 1.3 assists per game. He has scored in double-figures in five games and is shooting 54.1 percent (33-61) from the floor.

FABULOUS FEMI:
Freshman forward Femi Kusimo is off to a tremendous start to his career, averaging 9.8 points, 5.1 rebounds and 1.5 assists per game. A First Team All-State performer at Charleston Catholic High School, Kusimo is shooting .592 from the floor this season, claims five double-figure scoring games and has led the team in rebounding on four occasions. Kusimo began his W&L career by totaling 16 points, nine rebounds, four assists, one block and one steal in the season-opening loss to Nazareth.

THE 411 ON HALKITIS:
Sophomore guard Chris Halkitis had a fine season in 2003-04, earning Honorable Mention All-ODAC honors after hitting 54-of-129 three-point attempts (.419). Halkitis has been in a slump of late, having hit just 24 of his last 83 three-point attempts (.289) dating back to last season. However, Halkitis has begun to break the slump after hitting 5-of-10 three's in the two games over the weekend. Halkitis is averaging 9.4 points per game in 2004-05 and already ranks 12th on W&L's all-time three-pointer list with 68 career makes.

WHY SO CHARITABLE?:
Last season, W&L was outscored by its opponents by a total of 174 points for the season. Much of that difference occurred at the foul line, where the Generals held a 111-point disadvantage. Again this season, W&L is being outscored at the line as its opponents have hit (153) more free throws than it has attempted (142). W&L has been outscored by a total of 125 points this season, a total which is enhanced by a 56-point disadvantage at the foul line.

FIVE AND DIME:
W&L placed five players in double-figures against Emory on Nov. 27, marking the first time that five players had scored at least 10 points since a 79-59 win over Daniel Webster in the 2002-03 season-opener. The Generals nearly placed six in double-digits as freshman guard Andrew Franklin finished the game with nine points. W&L has not placed six in double-figures since a 102-81 win over Eastern Mennonite during the 1994-95 season.

THE SCHEDULE:
W&L is 0-8 overall, but consider the strength of the schedule that W&L has played to date. Excluding Division I The Citadel, W&L's opponents have combined to go 31-11 (.738) entering this week. Every team has a winning record except SUNY-New Paltz, who is 3-4 overall. Virginia Wesleyan is 7-0, while Bridgewater, Emory and Trinity are all 5-1 overall.

THE YOUTH:
Senior guard Mike Stuart and junior forward David Will are the only upperclassmen to see action in 2004-05. The Generals 11 underclassmen who have played in the team's eight games thus far have combined to average 43.3 points, 23.1 rebounds and 11.1 assists per game. That translates into 70.2 percent of the team's points, 74.3 percent of the team's rebounds and 86.6 percent of the team's assists.

-- GENERALS --