William & Mary 100, Bluefield 57

The William & Mary Tribe are off to a solid 2-1 start to the season after Thursday night’s 100-57 walloping of Bluefield College at Kaplan Arena in Williamsburg, Va.

With three players scoring in double figures by halftime — and the Rams barely breaking double figures as a team — the Tribe raced to a 48-15 edge and never stopped rolling.

William & Mary (2-1) has now won two in a row after dropping its season opener to No. 8 Florida.

Leading the Tribe in scoring were reigning Colonial Athletic Association Player of the Year and senior guard Marcus Thornton and fellow guard Daniel Dixon. Both dropped in 18 points in just a little over a half as the Tribe rested both starters from the middle of the second half on.

Also scoring in double figures was guard Greg Malinowski, who finished with 13 points. All three guards were red-hot from 3-point range, going a combined 9 of 12.

Bluefield (2-4), an NAIA program from western Virginia that lost its second straight game, was paced by guard Zeke Williams with 14 points. He added four assists.

Rams guard Joseph McClain chipped in 12 points, followed by 11 points on an off night from guard Kyle Grisby, who struggled mightily and went 5 of 20 from the field, including 1 of 8 from long range.

Forward Devin Page was the last Rams players to reach double figures with 10 points. He also had five rebounds.

This was the second meeting ever between the schools. The Tribe cruised to a 101-48 blowout on Valentine’s Day in 1980. The Tribe are now 7-0 in their last seven games against non-Division I competition.

Thursday’s game with Bluefield marked the second game in five days for the Tribe, who will next play Rice on Sunday.