Coach Page Moir and his Roanoke College men's basketball team got a nice Christmas present. They finally got to tear it open and show it off Saturday afternoon at Bast Center.

Thanks in large part to a lift supplied from newcomer Julian Ramirez, the Maroons were able to cruise to a rare stress-free victory, leading all the way in an 81-63 nonconference victory over Covenant.

Finally making his much-delayed Roanoke debut, Ramirez had 10 points, four assists and two steals in only 18 minutes off the bench to help the Maroons (3-6) post only their second win of December.

Ramirez, who spent two years on Fork Union's postgraduate team, matriculated to Roanoke last year but didn't become eligible to join the squad until this past fall. His return was further delayed when he sustained a wrist injury. The 5-foot-10 freshman from Palmyra finally started practicing with the team two weeks ago. Now, at last, he's ready to rock and roll.

"This was my first game in almost two years," Ramirez said with a grin."I was real glad to get out there because I've been waiting for a long time. I was real anxious when I got out there. I was jittery, shaking a little bit, but after the game went on, I felt better.

"It's good to get that first game off my back. I think I played pretty good. People hadn't seen me play, so it's good to show them a little something."

After losing six of their first eight games, the Maroons needed a shot in the arm going into a crucial five-game homestand that continues Monday and Tuesday in the Morris Cregger Invitational at Bast.

"This was a pivotal game because if you don't get this one then heads start to go down,"Moir said. "These guys believe, they're tough kids, but when you've got a young team and starting so many sophomores and freshmen playing †if they don't get some success eventually then they just start [not] believing in themselves.

"Right now, they do believe in themselves and they know we can do some things. And they know we can't afford any more mistakes. We lost a couple of games we shouldn't have."

As usual, big man Logan Singleton (Hidden Valley) and guard Kwasi Amponsah continue to do most of the heavy lifting for Roanoke.Singleton had a game-high 21 points, while Amponsah had 15 points and five steals. Clay Lacy (Cave Spring) contributed 14 points.

Thelatest present from Santa won't go unused, either. Look for Ramirez to join Amponsah and Ethan Humphries (James River) as major contributors in the guard rotation.

"Julian brings a ton," Moir said. "He knows how to play. He is a smart player. And we felt that when we got him that this kid is going to be a really good one. He can be like Kwasi in a lot of ways. He's not a huge scorer, but he's a pretty good scorer."

Amponsah, the ODAC'S leading scorer (19.8 ppg), welcomes the help. Anything to get the mothership moving better.

"Julian is real good player, he pushes the ball, he can handle it, and score as well," Amponsah said. "He adds another feature to our offense, so it's a real good thing to have. He did well his first game out and he should be a big part of the offense."

COVENANT (4-7)

Cox 2 2-3 6, Lakey 1 0-2 2, Sears 1 2-4 4, DeVries 1 0-1 2, Danek 6 1-2 14, Randall 0 0-0 0, Frierson 0 0-0 0, Mutcherson 2 7-7 11, DeLaney 0 0-0 0, Burns 1 0-0 2, Plating 0 0-0 0, Chaney 0 0-0 0, Ferguson 1 2-2 4, McGriff 4 3-3 12, Werkema 0 0-0 0, Engbers 2 1-2 6, Totals 21 18-26 63.

ROANOKE (3-6)

Humphries 0 0-1 0, Amponsah 5 4-4 15, Lacy 5 3-4 14, Singleton 8 3-4 21, Hamilton 1 0-0 2, Thacker 1 1-2 4, Vulevic 0 0-0 0, Ramirez 4 2-5 10, Hunter 1 0-0 2, Kessler 0 0-0 0, Barrett 2 1-2 6, Akers 0 2-2 2, Eacho 0 0-2 0, Shorter 1 0-0 2, Weant 1 0-1 2, Totals 29-56 81.

Halftime - Roanoke 45-31. 3-point goals - Covenant 3-23 (Danek 1-1, McGriff 1-2, Engbers 1-3, Mutcherson 0-6, Sears 0-4, Plating 0-3, Cox 0-1, Randall 0-1, DeLaney 0-1, Burns 0-1), Roanoke 6-13 (Singleton 2-4, Amponsah 1-1, Barrett 1-1, Lacy 1-2, Thacker 1-2, Vulevic 0-1, Hunter 0-1, Shorter 0-1). Rebounds - Covenant 49 (Danek 9), Roanoke 41 (Singleton 6, Hamilton 6). Total fouls - Covenant 21, Roanoke 23. Fouled out - Eacho. Assists - Covenant 5 (Lakey 2), Roanoke 12 (Ramirez 4).