Box Score

PHILADELPHIA, Pa. – The Southern Connecticut State University men's basketball team came back from down as many as 13 but fell to St. Thomas Aquinas 92-90 on a buzzer beater in the first round of the NCAA Tournament. The loss caps off a season that saw the Owls win 22 games in Scott Burrell's first year as head coach of the team.
 
The score was tied at 89 when Michael Mallory (Waterbury, Conn.) went to the line for two free throws for Southern Connecticut. He made the first and missed the second. St. Thomas Aquinas' James Mitchell grabbed the rebound and was fouled, sending him to the line on the other end. Mitchell missed the first free throw and made the second, setting the scene for an exciting finish.
 


Joey Wallace (Rochester, N.Y.) brought up the ball and drove baseline, but was called for a close charging foul in the paint with 3.8 seconds left. STAC's Chaz Walter took the ball three-quarters the length of the floor and scored a difficult layup as time expired to close out the game.
 
The comeback started when Southern Connecticut was down 68-81 with 5:50 remaining in the game. Wallace hit a three to begin the 22-12 run for the Owls. After STAC hit a shot on the other end, Isaiah McLeod (Cambridge, Mass.) nailed a jumper that was followed by two Desmond Williams (Torrington, Conn.) free throws.
 
Mallory and Wallace hit back-to-back threes on the next two possessions for the Owls, then Austin Carter (Bloomfield, Conn.) came up with a steal and a putback layup to get Southern to within two. St. Thomas Aquinas scored a jumper on their end to get the lead back up to four, but McLeod and Williams hit all four free throws they took on the Owls next two possessions to tie it up at 89.
 
Southern Connecticut was down as much as eight late in the first half. The Owls chipped away at the lead as Carter and Jack McCarthy (Wallingford, Conn.) scored a few easy layups. McCarthy provided strong minutes off the bench for Southern as he put in eight points, eight rebounds, two blocks and two steals in 20 minutes of action. With 1:18 remaining in the first half, Mallory canned a three to cut the STAC lead to one. Williams missed a three on the next Owl possession but Carter was right there for the putback slam to give Southern a one point lead with 29 seconds on the clock. Walter of the Spartans hit a buzzer-beater to give STAC a one point lead at the half.
 
Although STAC's largest lead was 13, there were 10 lead changes and seven ties in the game. Mallory filled up the stat sheet as he led all scorers with 27 points. He added five assists, four rebounds, three steals and two blocks. Williams finished with 16 points, eight rebounds, six assists and one steal. Carter was strong on the boards with 16 rebounds, eight of them offensive. The NE-10 Defensive Player of the year added three assists, three steals and one block. As a team, the Owls forced 13 turnovers and scored 42 points in the paint.