Lexington, Va. -- The 17th-ranked University of Lynchburg men's basketball team survived a late rally from Washington and Lee to take an 82-79 Old Dominion Athletic Conference victory Thursday night on the road.

It's the ninth consecutive victory for the Hornets.

Senior wing Austin Wrighten (Woodbridge, Va.) led the Hornets with 24 points and 11 rebounds, his ninth double-double of the season.

Sophomore forward T.C. Thacker (Madison Heights, Va.) and senior forward Connor Schroeder (Blacksburg, Va.) scored 18 and 15 points, respectively, for Lynchburg. Both narrowly missed a double-double, corralling nine rebounds apiece.

Junior guard Chance Greene (Creedmoor, N.C.) also found his way into double figures, scoring 13 points to go with a team-best five assists.

Roy McMillian led the way for Washington and Lee with 22 points and nine boards. Curtis Mitchell added 13 points and 11 rebounds for the Generals.

THE RUNDOWN

Final: No. 17 Lynchburg 82, Washington and Lee 79

Records: No. 17 Lynchburg (16-1, 7-1 ODAC), Washington and Lee (12-5, 5-3 ODAC)

Venue: Duchossois Tennis Center, Washington and Lee University, Lexington, Va.

HOW IT HAPPENED

• After a close first few minutes, Lynchburg opened up a double-digit lead on back-to-back 3s by Wrighten and senior guard Devante' Young (Charlotte, N.C.), a 22-11 advantage with 10:51 to halftime.

• Lynchburg pushed the lead to as many as 13, but the Generals cut the lead to eight, 42-34 by halftime.

• W&L opened the second half on a 13-2 run, taking a 45-44 lead on Curtis Mitchell's layup with 17:52 to go.

• The Hornets counterpunched with a run of their own, an 18-0 burst capped by a pair of Wrighten free throws. The senior scored 11 of the 18 points in the run, which put Lynchburg ahead by 15 points with 12:45 on the clock.

• The Generals cut the lead to single digits briefly at the 9:00 mark before Lynchburg pulled back away, but a 9-1 W&L run cut the lead to 4 with just 3:01 to play.

• Thacker scored a basket and a free throw in the final 180 seconds, and the Hornets defense held the Generals to just two buckets down the stretch to preserve the victory.

LOOKING AHEAD

The Hornets will hit the trail again Saturday, Jan. 19 with a trip to Eastern Mennonite in Harrisonburg, Va., in a continuation of ODAC play. Lynchburg defeated EMU, 87-72, November 25.

--LYN--