March Madness Starts Early for Quakers

The Guilford College men's basketball team's remarkable season can end on a particularly high note Saturday afternoon inside Ragan-Brown Field House.

The No. 14-ranked Quakers, with a record of 20-4 overall and 13-2 in conference play, will host No. 2 Randolph Macon at 4:30 p.m., in the regular season finale for both teams.

Guilford, which currently sits at third place in the Old Dominion Athletic Conference standings, has an opportunity to avenge an early-season loss to the Yellow Jackets and build momentum heading into the postseason.

Head coach Tom Palombo's squad has a .867 winning percentage, which is the program's best since the 2009-10 season. The 2009-10 Quakers team played in the semifinals of the NCAA Division III National Tournament.

This season's team opened the year with a 2-2 record, before rattling off nine wins in a row by an average of 20 points. Though a road trip to Randolph Macon would see that winning streak come to an end, the Quakers have since won nine of their last 10 games. After initially being left out of the preseason Top 25, Guilford entered the rankings at No. 24 and has since risen to No. 14.

Often undersized in matchups, Palombo's well-coached squad relies on high-level defense. Guilford holds teams to an average 55.2 points per game, the second best in the entire nation. Stellar defense has also allowed the Quakers to win by an average of 16 points per game.

Tyler Dearman is the team's top scorer, averaging 16.4 points per game. He also recently joined Guilford's 1,000-point club. Jorden Davis averages 11.7 points a game and serves as an on-court leader for the Quakers. Freshman Gabe Proctor has an impressive 45-percent shooting percentage from 3-point range. Meanwhile, Julius Burch leads the Quakers in rebounds and also boasts a field goal percentage of nearly 50 percent.

Seniors and graduate students of Guilford's squad will be honored prior to tip-off. The Quakers have 7 honorees; Luke Bleynat, Elijah Bowens, Rob Littlejohn, Jorden Davis, Myles Washington, Julius Burch, and Tyler Dearman.

This year is the 50th anniversary of Guilford's first national championship. At halftime, the 1972-1973 Guilford College men's basketball national championship team will be recognized.

A win Saturday night gives the Quakers a chance to climb the conference standings in hopes of securing a higher seed for the conference tournament. It also allows the Quakers to boost their NCAA tournament resume with a victory against a highly-ranked opponent.

Saturday's game gives the Quakers an early start to March Madness.

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