Box Score

PLEASANTVILLE, N.Y. -  The Southern Connecticut State University men's basketball team was unable to escape Pace with its perfect record intact, falling, 80-78, in overtime.

A three-pointer attempt by Luke Houston (Pearl River, N.Y.) rimmed out at the buzzer. 

Greg Langston (Stratford, Conn.) recorded a double-double in defeat.  The senior guard, who led all scorers with 25 points, grabbed 14 rebounds and was one of five players to score in double figures for SCSU, 4-1, 1-1 Northeast-10 Conference.

Tylon Smith (Manchester, Conn.) tallied 15 points to go along with six rebounds and five assists.  Stefon Williams (Jamacia, N.Y.) scored 14 points, while Houston added 11.  Michael Mallory (Waterbury, Conn.) came off the bench to score 12 points.  The freshman scored eight of his points in the second half and overtime.

The Owls opened the game on a 14-6 run. The Setters battled back to trail by a single point with only 10 minutes before intermission.

Down a point 12 minutes in, Southern Connecticut went on a 14-2 run to lead 41-32 with 3:02 remaining in the opening period. At the half, SCSU was ahead on the scoreboard by 7, 45-38.  Langston totaled 18 first half points.

Coming out of the locker room, Pace got out to a quick start, working to cut the Owls' advantage to four, 57-53, with 11:22 left in the game.  Southern Connecticut, which led by as many as 10 in the second half, always was able to stay a couple of baskets ahead for the next few minutes however.

Toward the middle portion of the second half, the Owls' shooters went cold.  Pace took advantage of the missed three-point tries and layups by SCSU, netting multiple baskets on offensive boards part of a 22-10 run, to lead 64-63 with 6:14 left in the game.

The tight defensive game had 3 lead changes and 2 ties over the final six minutes.

A Mallory jumper with less than a minute left gave SCSU a 70-68 lead.  The freshman's two point almost were the winning points, but a tip in by Nick Jackson at the buzzer sent the game into overtime.

In the extra frame, Pace shot out to quick four point advantage, but baskets by Williams, and Langston knotted the game at 74.  A Mallory jumper tied the game again at 76.  Pace responded to another Mallory field goal with a three pointer to take a 79-78 lead with 26 seconds remaining. A Jackson free throw gave the Setters their two-point winning margin.

Jonathan Merecus led Pace with 23 points and 15 rebounds.

SCSU plays next on Dec. 4 at home against Saint Rose.  The NE-10 Conference game will tip off at 7:30.