SPORTS

 

RICHMOND, Va. – In addition to Jon Axel Gudmundsson’s game-high 22 points, Luka Brajkovic recorded his fifth double-double with 16 points and 10 rebounds, to lead Davidson in a 73-69 come-from-behind victory over Richmond, Saturday at the Robins Center.

With the win, the Wildcats conclude the regular season 23-8 overall and will enter next week’s Atlantic 10 Men’s Basketball Championship as the No. 2 seed thanks to a 14-4 league record.

Kellan Grady (17) and Carter Collins (11) also scored in double figures for the Wildcats, who shot 53.1 percent and went 17-of-21 at the charity stripe.

Richmond (12-19, 6-12 A-10) extended the margin back to double digits, 59-49, with 9:18 to play, but the Wildcats responded reeling off seven unanswered, sparked by a Collins’ layup and triple in consecutive trips, and eventually tied the score, 63-63.

After Jacob Gilyard’s fifth 3-pointer put the Spiders back in front, 66-63, with 2:22 left, Brajkovic hit a free throw and had a pair of put backs as part of a 9-1 stretch to give Davidson the lead for good.

Brajkovic’s layup with 45 seconds remaining, gave the Wildcats their first advantage since it was 3-2 a minute and 10 seconds into the contest.

Grant Golden led the way for Richmond with 20 points, while Gilyard added 17.

Davidson, which trailed by as many as 11 in the contest, turned in an impressive defensive effort after intermission holding the Spiders to just 37 percent in the half.

The opening half was a game of runs as the two teams exchanged 12-3 spurts to find themselves deadlocked, 15-15. After Richmond grabbed its largest lead 34-23 with 2:45 left in the period, the Wildcats closed on a 9-2, including the last seven to cut the deficit to 36-32 at the break.

Up Next
Davidson will begin its title defense Friday in a 6 p.m. quarterfinal matchup against the winner of No. 7 Duquesne/No. 10 Saint Joseph’s inside the Barclays Center.