Williamsburg, Va. - Playing for the third time in six days, the William and Mary men's basketball team traded blows with Delaware on Saturday afternoon at Kaplan Arena, but each W&M run was answered by the Blue Hens on the way to a 75-64 Delaware road win. The difference in the game came in rebounding and free throws, where the Blue Hens, who placed five starters in double figures, outrebounded the Tribe, 39-29, and outscored W&M by 10 points (22-12) at the free throw line. The College dropped to 3-13 overall and 1-3 in CAA play, while Delaware, which won for the second straight time, evened its mark at 7-7 on the year and improved to 3-1 in league action.

Freshman guard Marcus Thornton led the Tribe in scoring for the third straight game with 19 points to go along with a team-high three assists and two steals. Senior forward Quinn McDowell finished with 13 points and five rebounds, while junior guard Matt Rum turned in a nice all-around stat line with nine points and team-highs in rebounds (6) and assists (3).



Trailing by eight at the intermission, W&M scored the opening five points of the half to close to 37-34 on the Thornton 3-pointer at the 17:14 mark. The Blue Hen lead was 45-40 following a long jumper from freshman forward Tom Schalk, six minutes into the second half, before the Blue Hens scored seven straight points to push the advantage back to 12 points. A Kyle Anderson 3-pointer sent the margin into double digits before Devon Saddler knocked down a jumper to give the Hens a 52-40 cushion with 12:05 left.

A 7-1 Tribe run closed the gap to six, 55-49, following four straight points from McDowell at the 8:53 mark. The Delaware lead was just five points, 57-52, with 6:19 remaining, before the Blue Hens scored seven straight points capped by a 3-pointer from the right wing by Anderson to extend the margin back to 12 at 64-52.

The College clawed to within six via an 8-2 spurt. Thornton found senior Kendrix Brown for a 3-pointer from the top of the key to cut the deficit to 66-60 with 1:56 remaining. W&M could get no closer though as the Blue Hens scored nine of the game's next 11 points, including a perfect 7-of-7 from the free throw line, to put the contest away.

W&M finished the game shooting 40.4 percent (23-of-57) from the field, while Delaware connected on 47.1 percent (24-of-51) from the floor. The biggest advantages for the Blue Hens came in the rebounding department and at the free throw line. UD outrebounded W&M, 39-29, and was 22-of-28 (78.6 percent) from the free throw line. The Tribe finished with 10 assists and only turned the ball over six times.

The Blue Hens started the game out on fire, knocking down nine of their first 12 shots on the way to a 21-9 advantage. Anderson capped the Delaware run with a 3-pointer from the right wing and a jumper from just inside the top of the key to give the Blue Hens the 12-point cushion with 12:20 remaining.

Trailing 23-11, the Green and Gold put together a 12-point spurt to pull even at 23. Sophomore forward Tim Rusthoven scored five points on the run, including a lay-up off an assist from Rum at the 7:50 mark to pull the College within three. Following a defensive stop, Rusthoven found sophomore Julian Boatner open on the left wing and the Bloomington, Ind., native knocked down the triple to tie the game at 23 with seven minutes left in the opening half.

The Blue Hens responded with 12-point run of its own, pushing the lead back to double digits. Anderson scored on a pair of lay-ups, before Devon Saddler knocked down three free throws after being fouled on a 3-point attempt. Khalid Lewis capped the spurt with a driving lay-up to give the Blue Hens a 35-23 advantage with 1:49 remaining in the first half.

On the ensuing Tribe possession, Thornton slashed to the basket, scored and drew the foul. He converted the 3-point play to pull W&M back within nine, before Boatner knocked down his second 3-pointer of the half with 52 seconds remaining to close the gap to six. Saddler scored on a jumper with 26 seconds remaining to send the Blue Hens to the locker room with an eight-point cushion, 37-29. Delaware shot 53.6 percent (15-of-28) from the floor in the opening half to outdistance the Green and Gold.

Anderson led all five Delaware starters in double figures with 17 on 7-of-14 from the floor. Saddler finished with 15 points, while junior Josh Brinkley added 14 points and nine rebounds. Jamelle Hagins posted another double-double performance for the Blue Hens finished with 13 points and 12 rebounds. Lewis rounded out the group with 11 points and three assists.

The Tribe will return to action on Wednesday, Jan. 11, when it travels to Towson for the first of three straight road games for the Green and Gold. Tip-off is slated for 7 p.m. at the Towson Center Arena. Fans can catch the action over the Tribe Radio Network with Jay Colley, Bill McDonald and Charlie Woollum on the call. The Tide 92.3 FM in Williamsburg is the flagship station of the Tribe Radio Network and the broadcast can also be heard over the Internet at TribeAthletics.com.