RMC dealt with the Guilford pressure defense much more effectively last night than they did back in January, winning 94-73. The 21 point difference is the largest Quakers loss all season. Still, the Quaker defense caused the Jackets to struggle from three-point range (7 of 28), as they react really well to ball movement and make it harder to get those shots off with your feet set. But RMC made up for it by hitting 80.6% of their two point attempts, many on fast breaks or long over-the-top passes when inbounding. Altogether a good effort by the Jackets against a difficult style of defense to face.

Kudos also to the RMC defense which held the Quakers to fewer than 75 points for only the fourth time all season.

Nice work, to whoever changed the name of this board. Pat Coleman??

Should this board be renamed "At-Large (formerly Pool C)"?

^^^ Averett got a home win over VWU in that game that was suspended and completed more than a week (maybe two) later. RMC struggled at Guliford and if they can't make shots around the basket (which they had an uncharacteristically hard time doing tonight) they could easily lose against the Quakers' new style of play, which can build leads quickly if they are hitting their shots. That makes it tough to come back unless they suddenly go cold.

RMC wins at Bridgewater 67-61 on a terrible shooting night for the Jackets and a very good one for the Eagles. Offensive rebounding by the Jackets gave them extra chances. It didn't always result in points but gave them more time with the ball and kept it away from the hot shooting Eagles. Unlike the game in Ashland, when Bridgewater had two or three key players unavailable to illness, they showed that they are a good team in spite of their conference record.

Conference quarterfinals are now set:

RMC vs Guilford
VWU vs Averett
Roanoke vs W&L
H-SC vs Lynchburg (which gets the 5 seed due to its head-to-head win over W&L)

Guilford wins at Averett to lock up an ODAC tourney spot.

Quote from: CNU85 on February 18, 2026, 03:50:11 PM

Quote from: rmc1982 on February 18, 2026, 02:58:23 PMD3 Datacast has us with a 95% chance of winning and the line is 18.5 points! I know Crenshaw is worth 5-10 points usually but i dunno about that many! They predict the score will be 75-57....WOW

MAassey has it 74-60. I think a 12-15 point win is about right.

I never would have thought the computers would have the game so lopsided. I'd have predicted a single digit win, at best, for RMC. It turned out to be a 10 point margin, 68-58, though it could have been more were it not for a couple of late RMC miscues -- fouling on a Marlins missed three-point attempt. All three FTs were good. Then not scoring on the next possession and giving up a three-pointer. That trimmed a 14 point lead to eight and gave the Marlins hope with 37 seconds left. But RMC managed to hang on.

Here is Quillman's post on Twitter/X regarding the data he is using: https://x.com/BQuillmanQcast/status/2023560099596259695

"I am getting the data *directly from school Athletic Departments.*  These are being sent to me by Athletic dept leaders who hate the drop in viewership after moving to Flo. 

"I am being sent spreadsheets with 2025 vs 2026 viewers/time viewed data.  It's black & white."

Saw this on Twitter/X: https://my.omeda.com/portal/report/EmailPreviewDeploymentExternal.jsp?aW5Ccm93c2VyPXkmU3BsaXRJZD00NDE2OCZFbnZpcm9ubWVudElkPTEyNTY4

"The Q-Cast's Bob Quillman reports a 'very successful UAA MBB program' is seeing a 73% drop in total viewership in its first year on FloSports, with total minutes watched down 56% and viewership of its top five games falling by 70%. Quillman adds that a current top 25 men's basketball program is seeing viewership fall from 704 to 177 and women's basketball viewership fall from 437 to 90. (link, link, link); Willamette Director of Athletic Communications Chris Sabato adds via X: 'This is unsurprising and not unexpected. What's also unsurprising is the average view time probably increased 200x. Unfortunately this is a long play and we won't know the actual effects for several years.' (link)

"'In a statement to D3.ticker, FloSports notes: 'These figures are inconsistent with our data and any historical comparisons are not an apples-to-apples exercise. On average, viewership is multiples beyond what Mr. Quillman shared, with top games more than 10x those viewer numbers on the FloSports platform. Historically, FloCollege partners see a rise in viewership for live and on-demand events, with added lift from 'Game of the Week' broadcasts on social media, highlights, and broad editorial coverage across our channels. As with all our partners, we constantly review viewership data to identify areas for improvement, noting that these improvements come over time on the platform. FloCollege is a tireless advocate for Division III sports, evidenced by a multi-million dollar commitment to help the schools, teams and athletes in this space unlock their full potential. We are always exploring new ways to support our partners and look forward to engaging Mr. Quillman around our shared goal of growing the game at the Division III level.'" (link)

^^^ I just found this article, which provides a bit more detail.

https://cardinalnews.org/2026/01/27/averett-finalizes-sale-leaseback-deal-for-athletic-campus/

It includes this: "Averett may repurchase the facilities at any time for the original sale price, according to the university's announcement. Under the terms of the sale and leaseback, the $18.15 million price will be paid over three years. Averett will lease the campus for a maximum of $7.45 million over 10 years.

"Under the leaseback agreement, Averett will have first priority to use the property, but the announcement Monday noted that the university, DRF and RIFA will "explore additional ways to utilize the property for the benefit of the region," which could include sporting events and concerts."

So the purchasers appear to be wanting to help the university and the region and see the possibility of other entities renting them as well, to help offset the cost of the acquisition.

Quote from: Ryan Scott (Hoops Fan) on February 15, 2026, 07:33:46 PM

Quote from: y_jack_lok on February 15, 2026, 07:33:03 PMForgot to mention that when the Averett starters were introduced at RMC yesterday, they were four sophomores and a freshman. The next couple of seasons look bright for the Cougars.

If the school stays open!

Yeah, that's an issue, but they're working on it. https://www.wdbj7.com/2026/01/29/averett-university-enters-salelease-back-agreement/

Forgot to mention that when the Averett starters were introduced at RMC yesterday, they were four sophomores and a freshman. The next couple of seasons look bright for the Cougars.

RMC split the season matchups with Averett, avenging the loss in Danville 86-50. Another game where all available Jackets got playing time, no one played more that 25 minutes, and scoring was spread out among 13 players.

Guilford needs a win over either Averett or Shenandoah to lock up the final conference tournament slot. The winner of Wednesday night's EMU vs Shenandoah game will still have a shot if Guilford loses at Averett.

Congrats to the Webster Gorloks and Coach Bunch on setting a new record for most wins in a season by notching win #21 today vs Greenville. Webster had won 20 games in a season four times previously, all under Coach Bunch.

Today's win was also #15 in a row, which could also be a new Webster record.

Quote from: hasanova on February 12, 2026, 01:14:03 PMHuge road win for the Quakers last night.  In a 12-team conference where only the top 8 make the tournament, even #8 is still a pretty good team.  Raise your hand if you want your team to play Guilford in the first round.

I don't know how the coaches and players might feel, but I'd accept that challenge for RMC since it would be a home game for the Jackets. A semi-final or final round game in Salem is another matter.