Post University Tops Men's Basketball in OT, 73-72
Box Score
BROOKVILLE, N.Y. (Nov. 17, 2012) – The LIU Post men's basketball team came back from a late ten-point deficit and took a lead in overtime against the Post University Eagles, but could not hold the lead as they fell 73-72 in their home opener on Saturday afternoon.
LIU Post bumps to 0-3 on the season while Post University improves to 3-1.
The visitors jumped out to an early advantage, taking an 11-6 lead over the host Pioneers in the first seven minutes of play. But a layup by
Dillon Burns (Staten Island, N.Y.) sparked the Pioneer offense, which quickly reversed the deficit into a 12-11 lead courtesy of a 6-0 burst.
The game see-sawed back and forth as the teams battled to four ties and three lead changes over the next ten minutes, and the Pioneers took the lead at the 5:36 mark, increasing it to a 28-24 spread following a free throw by
Charles McCann (Springfield Gardens, N.Y.). But a trey by Zach Krischner cut the lead to one, and a layup by Derrick Strong gave the visitors the lead at 4:20.
The Pioneers battled back to tie it with 1:30 left, but a jumper by Stephen Perry with eight seconds left in the half gave the Eagles the lead heading into halftime.
Senior guard
Tobin Carberry (Hamden, Conn.) scored on back-to-back possession to open the half and regain the lead for the Pioneers, 36-34.
The lead changed hands several times yet again, but the Eagles slowly began to pull away at the 12 minute mark, and built a ten-point lead against the Pioneers with 8:27 to play, up 57-47. The Pioneers attempted to chip away, but it wasn't until the 1 minute mark that they were finally able to cut the lead to two possession, trailing 67-63 with 1:02 to play.
A steal by junior
Vaughn Allen (Mount Vernon, N.Y.) and a quick layup by freshman
Emile Blackman (Dix Hills, N.Y.) cut the lead to two, and senior guard
Billy Butler (Floral Park, N.Y.) got another quick steal on the next Eagle possession and after being fouled on his shot attempt, hit two free throws to tie the game. An Eagles possession with 16 seconds left could not produce any offense and the game headed into overtime.
The Pioneers built a quick four-point lead in OT behind a dunk by Blackman and two free throws by Butler, but a Krischner trey cut the lead to one with 1:16 to play, and after a Pioneer turnover, the Eagles worked the clock all the way down to 00:03 before scoring the go-ahead basket on a tip-in by Jerry Cummings. With only three seconds left, the Pioneers could not get off a shot and fell to their third straight loss.
Carberry was the leading scorer for the Pioneers, with 21 points on 7-17 shooting. Sophomore
Tyuan Williams (Newark, N.J.) grabbed a game-high 15 rebounds for the hosts, who held a sizeable 48-30 edge on the glass. Allen chipped in with 17 points, while Buler scored 11 and led the team with six assists.
Stephen Perry's 21 points off the bench paced four Post University scorers in double figures.
The next contest for the Pioneers comes after Thanksgiving, as LIU Post will travel to Merrimack for a 2 p.m. contest on November 25.