Virginia Beach, Va. (2/3/08) - Ben Strong scored 30 points and grabbed seven rebounds in visiting Guilford College's 75-67 Old Dominion Athletic Conference (ODAC) basketball win at Virginia Wesleyan College Sunday afternoon.  The victory marked the Quakers' first road triumph over the Marlins since 2004 and their first sweep of Virginia Wesleyan since 2000-01.

Virginia Wesleyan (15-4, 9-3 ODAC) is ranked 14th in this week's D3hoops.com Top 25 Poll. The Quakers (14-4, 9-2 ODAC), winners of six straight games, are ranked 23rd in the poll.

Strong made 13-of-27 field goals and all four free throws in his first trip to the Batten Center since Guilford's NCAA Division III Tournament quarterfinal loss to the Marlins last March. Strong won the sectional tourney's Most Outstanding Player Award after scoring 93 points in Guilford's two games, including an NCAA Division III Tournament-record 59 in a triple-overtime win over Lincoln (Pa.) University.  He reached the 30-point plateau for the fifth game this season and the 13th time in his career.

Strong had 18 first-half points, which helped the Quakers build a 40-35 halftime lead.  The Marlins trailed by as many as 10 points in the period, but used an 11-0 run to take a 26-25 lead. The Quakers scored 11 of the half's final 16 points in the final 4:54 of the period.

The teams played most of the second half within four points of each other.  The Quakers answered practically every blow registered by the hosts in the second half. Sophomore Rhett Bonner drained two three-pointers in the period, the second of which answered a trifecta by Marlins' All-American Tonton Balenga, whose 19 points led the hosts. Guilford never trailed in the second half and sealed the win by making all eight free throws in the final 1:26.

Guilford's Eric Belkoski scored 13 points for the second time in as many games, including four three throws down the stretch. Caleb Kimbrough added nine points. Clay Henson, the Quakers' second-leading scorer, did not score, but dished out a game-best six assists. Guilford won the battle of the boards, 38-29, and committed a season-low seven turnovers.

Stephen Fields and Norman Hassell scored 12 points apiece for Virginia Wesleyan, the defending national runners up.  Hassell had 10 at halftime and scored early in the second half, but not again.  Balenga's seven rebounds shared game-high honors with Strong and Guilford's Tyler Sanborn.

Guilford plays its third straight game against an ODAC co-leader Wednesday (2/6), when the Quakers host Washington and Lee University at 7:00 p.m