GUILFORD MEN CLAIM SIXTH SEED FOR ODAC TOURNEY WITH OT WIN

Game Statistics

Emory, VA (02/11/01) -- Freshman forward Thomas Swindell (High Point, NC/Southwest Guilford) tipped in a Jaron Randall (Trenton, NJ/Princeton Day) miss at the buzzer to lift visiting Guilford to a 79-78 overtime Old Dominion Athletic Conference (ODAC) men's basketball win over Emory & Henry Monday night.

Guilford ended a season-long four-game losing slide and secured the sixth seed for this weekend's ODAC Tournament. The Quakers (10-14, 9-9 ODAC) finished the regular season with a school-record nine ODAC wins and its most overall victories since 1995, the last season Guilford qualified for the eight team league tourney.

Emory & Henry's Scott Laird gave the host Wasps (6-18, 3-15 ODAC) a 78-77 lead with a pair of free throws with eight seconds remaining before Guilford's winning possession. Randall, the senior point guard playing extensively for the first time in two weeks due to a knee injury, drove the lane as time expired. His floater missed and was tipped around a few times before Swindell knocked it in as time expired.

Guilford freshman forward Jevon Clarke (Apex, NC/Southeast Raleigh) forced the extra period with a layup with seven seconds remaining in regulation. It was the only basket of the game for the reserve forward who made his first appearance after missing the past three games with a knee injury.

The Wasps led by 50-42 with 16 minutes left in the game before Randall capped a 10-0 Quakers' run with 11 minutes remaining to give Guilford a 52-50 edge. No team led by more than four points from that point on as the clubs traded baskets before Clarke's game-tying hoop.

Junior center Aron McMillian (Greensboro, NC/Greensboro Day) scored a game- and career-high 23 points and grabbed seven rebounds for Guilford. Senior center Todd Ashworth (High Point, NC/Southwest Guilford) added 19 points and seven boards before fouling out. McMillian and Ashworth combined for 27 points and 10 boards in the first half as the Quakers battled back from a 10-point deficit to trail 42-39 at halftime. Sophomore Paul Kindem (Chapel Hill, NC/East Chapel Hill) added 12 points and a team-best nine boards for the Quakers.

Scott Smith scored 18 points and Paul Russo added 13 points in a losing cause. Laird finished with 11 points and a game-best 11 rebounds for Emory & Henry, which needed a win to maintain hope of earning the eighth and final seed into the league tourney.