For the past two seasons, Randolph-Macon has had its seasons end unceremoniously. This season, no matter what, the Yellow Jackets will get to hang a banner in Crenshaw Gymnasium with an end-of-season result on it, not just a final ranking in the D3hoops.com Top 25. Randolph-Macon athletics photo

By Ryan Scott
D3hoops.com

ASHLAND, Virginia — Randolph-Macon sneaks up on you.

It’s not that opponents don’t know what they’re getting into. The film is there, the record is there, the talent is there. The experience, though, is something different.

The Yellow Jackets aren’t flashy. They’re relentless and disciplined. The execution is second nature from the starting lineup through No. 10 or 12 on the bench. You think you’re in the game and competing and all of a sudden you’re down 20 and there’s no chance to come back.

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“We throw a lot at our guys,” says coach Josh Merkel. “[Before WPI] we had a two-hour session and all credit goes to the players, they are a great group of learners. We’ve been razor-sharp all year. They give us a chance to mix coverages, because they’ve been locked in.”

From November to March, if teams say anything after losing to Randolph-Macon, it’s the challenge of adjusting your offense on the fly to a constantly changing array of defensive positions. They will switch from man to zone every other possession, if they have to, and give you different looks within each set.

The Yellow Jackets earned the right to play in Fort Wayne with 23-point victories over very good Mass-Dartmouth and WPI squads. Both are experienced teams, with multiple senior guards, but by the time they found a rhythm on offense, especially in the second half, Randolph-Macon had pushed ahead.

Merkel's squad is shooting just under 50% from the floor and 40% from three, winning games by an average of almost 20 points, despite playing one of the toughest non-conference schedules in the country and in one of the deepest leagues.

“The ODAC has great defenses,” says four-time ODAC Player of the Year, point guard Buzz Anthony. “Our league is full of really good frontcourt players and that experience gives us confidence.”

The frontcourt is also where Randolph-Macon has seen the most growth this season. After narrowly defeating Marietta in November, Merkel commented that his team got pushed around and bullied. He said, “We weren’t as physical as we needed to be.”

Randolph-Macon in March is among the most physical teams you’ll see, largely due to the emergence of sophomore Daniel Mbangue, who always seems to be in the right position and does not shy away from contact.

Mbangue and fellow sophomore Will Coble have given Randolph-Macon more depth – a full eight guys who could play starter minutes on any given night with no drop off in production. It allows Anthony, Miles Mallory, and Josh Talbert more time on the bench this season – something that’s been a luxury in recent years.

“We have a defensive standard,” says Anthony. “We have a lot of guys every year who are offensive juggernauts, but they’re fighting to figure it out defensively. We’re not going to compromise. We’re not going to put in guys who can score 10 and give up 12 points. As the season goes on, those offensive dudes learn and learn and learn. Once they can forget about offense and just play defense they start playing to strengths like crazy.”

Mbangue’s strengths give Merkel real versatility in the lineup. At 6-4 and very athletic, he can be a stretch 4 against a smaller, quicker team, like UMass-Dartmouth, and then switch to a swing position when more size is called for against WPI. That’s pushed senior center David Funderburg to the bench more often towards the end of the season, but Funderburg embodies the team mentality that’s allowed Randolph-Macon to succeed thus far.

“Part of our success is how guys handle things like that,” say Merkel of Funderburg’s commitment. “Miles is one of the best bigs in the country and we’re really good when he’s at the 5. [David] understands – and they all do – that to win at the highest level there’s going to be some sacrifice, there’s going to be some pain.”

“It’s all about the win,” says Funderburg, “If we win, I’m smiling. If I’m not playing to the standard, I’d rather be on the bench, and get the win. It calls me to be great, to be at my best.”

Funderburg remains a key cog in the Randolph-Macon machine, but he and 6-7, dead-eye shooter, Ian Robertson are more an embarrassment of riches down the stretch than the core elements they were to start the year. The Yellow Jackets would not have beaten Marietta in November without Robertson’s 20 points or Funderburg’s tenacity down low, but now neither are the only weapons off the bench.

Those offensive weapons also allow Mallory to focus on defense almost exclusively. It’s not that he can’t score, averaging nearly 16 points per game on 58% shooting, he’s incredibly efficient, and, if needed, is perfectly capable for putting up 25 or 30 any given night, it’s just that he’s much more valuable controlling the paint.

Only 6-5, but with long arms and an incredible jumping ability, Mallory is averaging four blocks per game in the NCAA Tournament. He pulled down 17 rebounds against a smaller UMass-Dartmouth squad, but was more a presence boxing out and creating space for the other guys to clean the glass against a much larger WPI.

The Engineer’s John Lowther noted after the game he’d not yet faced a better defender in his basketball career. If Randolph-Macon sneaks up on you, Mallory is the epitome of it.

Somehow, the backcourt is pretty underrated, too. Buzz Anthony has won about every award there is. He’s a coach on the floor, a miracle worker with the ball in his hands, and pretty darn good on defense. What he also has, is a lot more quickness than you’d expect.

Mass-Dartmouth’s speed couldn’t contain him and WPI’s perimeter size wasn’t much of a match, either. He gets to where he wants to be on the floor and never seems rattled by what’s in front of him. Talbert might be even quicker, although he’s got a tendency to get ahead of himself with the ball in his hands. He’s perhaps Randolph-Macon’s best on-ball defender, though, and they’re going to need every bit of it in the rematch with Marietta in Fort Wayne on Friday.

“They have three elite guards,” says Merkel of the Pioneers. “[Lukas] Isaly is a special player, one of the best guards we’ve seen all season and this time of year is all about guard play.”

Anthony called the experience in November, “humbling,” with Marietta cheating a second defender on him over and over again, making things as difficult for the point guard as any opponent has this year. “I would’ve loved to get a little revenge on CNU,” says Anthony, on Randolph-Macon’s only blemish this season, a one point overtime loss at Christopher Newport, “But we are excited for Marietta. Our team talks about that game all the time. With a week of prep, I think we can be even better this time around.”

That’s the scary thing for Marietta and whichever opponent might face Randolph-Macon in the final. The team that’s been No. 1 most of the season just keeps getting better and better, raising the bar for everyone across Division III.

“Our franchise guys keep getting better,” says Merkel. “We have fourth- and fifth-year guys trying to impact the game and add value each time out. We’ve got a great group of learners who are committed and care deeply about each other and about winning.

This run is a culmination of three years at the very top of Division III basketball, but without a championship to show for it. Randolph-Macon would’ve been among the favorites in 2020 and 2021 if COVID had not canceled those tournaments. This team is the best version of itself at the exact right moment and they’re headed to Fort Wayne in the right frame of mind.

Says Funderburg: “The beauty of competition is to pull out the greatness in the guy you’re playing against. I hope they’re playing at their greatest to pull out the best in us and the same of us toward them.”