Richmond Falls at St. Bonaventure

Olean, NY —

The Richmond Spiders were defeated by the St. Bonaventure Bonnies 75-71 in front of a sell out crowd at the Reilly Center.  Once again, the Spiders struggled to shoot outside of the Robins Center.  They finished the night going 25-63 from the field & shooting just 31.4% from 3 point range.  It’s not easy to win at St. Bonaventure due to the home court advantage, and it adds insult to injury when you struggle shooting.

What Went Wrong?

The main factor was of course the bad shooting, but the 1st half was a true struggle defensively for the Spiders.  Grant Golden played a very solid game on both sides of the ball, but he found his teammates not picking up on defensive rotations a lot in the 1st half.  He finished the game with 13 points, 8 rebounds, & 5 assists. Osun Osunniyi was very tough to contain when he had the ball.  He finished the night with 13 & 4 rebounds.  The Bonnies had stretches where they seemed to be burying the Spiders, and it finally held true.  Nick Sherod going 1-6 isn’t what Richmond needed, especially on the road.

What Went Right?

This team fought until the end, and man if they didn’t almost steal this one.  Bobby Planutis picked up a flagrant 1 with 35.2 seconds to play, sending Andre Gustavson to the line.  He hit 1 of 2, making it a 6 point game at the time.  Blake Francis then knocked down a 3 cutting the lead to just one possession, and hope was alive.  With 25 seconds left it was a 5 point game, and no one other than Francis hits another 3, cutting it to just 2.  Blake finished with a team high 23 points.  Time wasn’t on Richmond’s side, and the Bonnies prevailed at the free throw line.  Tyler Burton played a solid game off the bench, pouring on 11 points & 9 rebounds.

Road Ahead

The Spiders will look to get things back on track on Wednesday, when they travel to Foggy Bottom to take on the George Washington Colonials.  Richmond defeated the Colonials 76-54 in their matchup at the beginning of the month.  A home date with UMass on Feb. 29th will conclude the February schedule for Richmond.  We will see you on Wednesday Spider Nation!