Golden's Late Three Gives Spiders Fifth Straight Win

Wednesday, December 18

Norfolk, VA

7:00 PM

University of Richmond

10-1

Old Dominion

3-9

RICHMOND

Old Dominion

12/18/2019 | Men's Basketball

Box Score AUDIO: Coach Mooney Postgame AUDIO: Grant Golden Postgame

NORFOLK, Va. -- Grant Golden's three-pointer from the top of the key with 1.6 seconds remaining was the difference for the Spiders in a 62-59 win at Old Dominion on Wednesday night. Golden's jumper gave the Spiders a win in a game they controlled throughout but could never put away, as the Monarchs stayed within single digits of UR throughout the game before tying score twice in the final four minutes.

The Spiders never trailed after Blake Francis's layup with just over two minutes in the game gave them a 3-2 lead, but Old Dominion didn't make it easy for Richmond. With their three-pointers not falling, the Spiders worked the ball inside frequently in the first half, building their lead to as many as nine before ODU rallied to get within four at 31-27 at intermission. Forwards Golden (12 points) and Nathan Cayo (6 points) led Richmond in the opening 20 minutes as UR outscored ODU 18-10 in the paint.

The Monarchs chopped their deficit to one with a three-pointer on the opening possession of the second half, but Blake Francis answered with a three-pointer, just the second of the night for the Spiders, to return the lead to four at 34-30. After the Spiders built their lead to as many as eight, the Monarchs again got within one after a fastbreak layup made the score 46-45 with 8:30 remaining. The teams traded buckets for the next five minutes before Old Dominion finally evened the score at 56 with 3:32 to play and then again at 59 with 1:40 to play following a three-point play by Xavier Green. After Richmond failed to score on its next two possessions, the Monarchs had a chance to take their first lead since the opening minutes of the game, but A.J. Oliver II's jumper with 27 seconds remaining was off target and Richmond's Andre Gustavson grabbed the rebound.

The Spiders didn't call timeout as Jacob Gilyard dribbled the ball upcourt and cut off a ballscreen from Golden at the top of the key with seconds remaining. Drawing two defenders, Gilyard flipped the ball back to Golden just outside the three-point line for the winning basket.

"Coach Mooney not calling timeout there really gave us a lot of confidence," said Golden after the game. "It shows that he trusts us to make the right decisions and get a good shot."

"I didn't want to give them a chance to sub or to switch defenses" said Mooney of his decision to not call a timeout before Richmond's final possession. "I liked some of our matchups and I felt like calling a timeout would have taken away some of the advantages we had."

Golden's game-winning shot was his first three-pointer of the game and just his second of the season. He also made the game's biggest shot in Richmond's win over Charleston on Saturday, a three-pointer with 2:08 remaining that stretched UR's lead to eight and ended a Charleston run. Golden finished with a season-high 19 points on 7-10 shooting from the field. He also added seven rebounds and four assists, tied with Gilyard for the most on the team. Gilyard collected four steals to give him 219 in his Spiders career, passing Kevin Anderson for third on Richmond's career list. Blake Francis added 18 points, the only other Spider to score in double figures as Richmond shot a season-low 41 percent from the field (21-51).

Richmond's 10-1 record is its best mark through 11 games since 1985-86, when the Spiders started 10-1 on their way to a 23-win season and NCAA Tournament appearance. The win was Richmond's first on the road against Old Dominion since 2012 and gave the Spiders an 8-7 advantage in games against the Monarchs during Chris Mooney's tenure.

Next up for the Spiders is a neutral-site matchup with Radford on Sunday at 3:30 PM at the Entertainment & Sports Arena in Washington D.C., part of the DC Holiday Hoops Fest Showcase.