The pursuit of a national basketball championship is well underway just north of Richmond.

After a delayed start because of the pandemic, Randolph- Macon College in Ashland is starting to live up to its preseason No. 1 billing.

In a season that started on Jan. 20, Coach Josh Merkel’s Yellow Jackets are 4-0, having outscored opponents by an average of 15 points per contest.

Before all the delays, Basketball Times ranked R-MC No. 1 in the NCAA Division III. That was based on a 28-2 mark a year ago with some 80 percent of the team’s firepower returning, most notably All-American guard Buzz Anthony.

The Yellow Jackets won the Old Dominion Athletic Conference regular season and tournament titles a year ago and then tacked on two NCAA playoff victories before the air was let out of the ball because of the coronavirus.

Anthony, a candidate for National Player of the Year, has plenty of help, starting with 6-foot-5 sophomore power forward Miles Mallory.

Mallory is anything but mild-mannered on the floor. The spring-loaded Beltsville, Md., native averages 15 points and nine rebounds and is an intimidating defender near the hoop.

David Funderburg and Ian Robertson, both 6 foot-7, complement Mallory in the front court.

Lorenzo Woods, a 5-foot-11 senior guard fromBurlington,N.C.,averagedninepointsand five assists, second on the team to Anthony.

Daquan Morris, a 6-foot junior from Philadelphia, and Will Paige, a 5-foot-8 freshman from Leesburg, have provided much energy coming off the bench.

Anthony averages 16.3 points, six assists and is hitting 50 percent from behind the arc and is a dynamo all over the floor.

Because athletes are being granted a “free year” for 2020-21 because of the pandemic, Anthony would be eligible to return next season, meaning the magic carpet ride in Ashland is far from over.

R-MC hopes to repeat as ODAC champ and advance to this year’s NCAA Divi- sion III playoffs — realistically with an undefeated record — in March.

The Ashlanders have come close before. In 1977, Coach Hal Nunnally’s Yellow Jackets fell to the University of Tennessee- Chattanooga 71-62 in the NCAA Division II finals in Springfield, Mass.

Coach Nunnally was succeeded in 1999 by Mike Rhoades, the current coach at Virginia Commonwealth University. Coach Rhoades was succeeded by Nathan Davis, the school’s first Black coach, who is now coaching at Bucknell University.

Coach Merkel served as Coach Davis’ assistant before becoming head coach six seasons ago.