WILLIAMSBURG, Va. – Behind a school-record scoring outburst, the William & Mary men's basketball team rolled to a 126-69 win over Milligan on Sunday afternoon at Kaplan Arena. The Tribe (7-3) shot a season-high 65.2 percent (43-of-66), including 16-of-31 from 3-point range (51.6 percent), and placed 11 players in the scoring column, including six in double figures. The victory was also notable in that it marked head coach Tony Shaver's 200th at W&M.
 
The Tribe opened up an early double-digit advantage thanks to a 10-0 run just three and a half minutes into the contest. Sophomore Nathan Knight, who led W&M with 21 points, scored seven of the Green and Gold's 10 points during the spurt, including a bucket at the 16:29 mark to give the home team a 14-4 advantage.
 
W&M extend the margin about 20 points with a 19-4 run. Sophomore Matt Milon scored eight of the Tribes' first 10 points during the run, before the Green and Gold scored eight in a row to end the run, including five from junior Paul Rowley. A Justin Pierce free throw at the midway point of the opening half pushed the lead to 35-12.
 
The Tribe hit is first eight shots of the second half as part of a 23-4 run to build a 40-point cushion. Pierce, who finished with a 20-point, 10-rebound double-double, scored 11 of the Tribe's 23 points, including nine of the first 14. W&M tallied 10 in a row to push the lead to 72-40 on a Pierce lay-up. The Green and Gold followed with nine straight, and a Luke Loewe tip-in at the 13:03 mark bumped the advantage to 81-41.
 
Loewe knocked down a pair of free throws with 2:59 remaining to tie the old school record for scoring (116) set in 1995 against George Mason. Senior walk-on Tommy Papas topped the mark just 20 second later on a jumper in the lane. The 126 points are the eighth most in the NCAA this season.
 
Individual Player Spotlight
Sophomore Nathan Knight led the Tribe with 21 points on 8-of-9 shooting to go with six rebounds, four assist and three blocked shots. Fellow sophomore Justin Pierce finished with a 20-point, 10-rebound double-double, while classmate Matt Milon tallied 19 points.
 
Daxton Bostian led Milligan with 13 points, while David Casaday chipped in 10 points off the bench.
 
By the Numbers
- W&M dished out a season-high 30 assists on its 43 made field goals. Senior David Cohn led W&M with 10 assists compared to two turnovers in 22 minutes.
 
- The Tribe connected on 85.7 percent from the free throw line (24-of-28), including 13-of-14 (92.9 percent) in the second half.
 
- The Green and Gold topped the 100-point mark for the fourth time this season, which is a program record.
 
Notes
W&M extended its home court non-conference win streak to 23 games, which is the seventh-longest active streak in the country … The Tribe's 30 assists were the second most in school history … The Green and Gold's 43 made field goals tied the Kaplan Arena record and are the second most in program history … W&M knocked down more than 15 3-pointers for the fifth time this season and the 16 triples rank fifth in school lore … The Tribe's 65.2 field goal percentage was the ninth-best in school history … After scoring eight points at Ohio State, graduate student Cole Harrison tallied a career-high 10 points on 4-of-6 from the field … Sophomore Justin Pierce picked up his fourth double-double in last eight games … Senior David Cohn recorded his CAA-leading fourth game of double-digit assists this season with 10 … His nine career double-digit assist games are a school record … Freshman Luke Loewe tallied career-highs in points (13), rebounds (5) and assists (5) … Senior Tommy Papas (2) and Amir Shafi (3) tallied the first points of their W&M careers … Papas added two assists, while Shafi had a steal and two rebounds … Head coach Tony Shaver recorded his 200th win at W&M on Sunday, becoming the 10th Tribe head coach across all sports to reach the mark.
 
Up Next
The Tribe closes out the non-conference portion of the schedule on the road at No. 14 TCU on Friday, Dec. 22, at 9 p.m. ET. The Horned Frogs are one of only four undefeated teams remaining in college basketball at 10-0 and currently have the longest active winning streak in the country at 15 games after winning the National Invitation Tournament last season.
 
Tribe fans can catch the men's basketball action over the Tribe Radio Network with Jay Colley and Charlie Woollum on the call. The Tide 92.3 FM and 107.9 Bach FM are the flagship stations of the Tribe Radio Network and the audio is also available over the Web at TribeAthletics.com.
 
Catch up on Tribe basketball as the 'Luncheon with Tony' series returns on Tuesday, Dec. 19. The monthly luncheons featuring head coach Tony Shaver will be held at Anna's Brick Oven and gives fans an inside look at Tribe basketball. The luncheon will include a buffet for $13.50. Anna's Brick Oven is located at 2021 Richmond Road in Williamsburg. The 'Luncheon with Tony' series provides fans the opportunity to get Coach Shaver's thoughts on the Tribe's season and upcoming games as well as talk W&M basketball with select Tribe players and the Green and Gold coaching staff.