BLOOMSBURG, Pa. - Turnovers on back-to-back Gannon possessions enabled Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference (PSAC) Eastern Division leader Bloomsburg to rally from a four-point deficit in the final 71 seconds of regulation, before the Huskies eventually posted a come-from-behind 67-64 overtime victory Saturday afternoon at the Nelson Field House.
Gannon fell to Bloomsburg for the first time in 10 all-time meetings. However, eight of the previous nine contests were played at the Hammermill Center with the Golden Knights' 82-45 victory in 2008-09 being the only game previously played at the Nelson Field House. The Huskies improved to 5-0 at home this season.
Bloomsburg trailed 48-41 with less than 10 minutes to play after a quick 5-0 Gannon run. The Huskies were able to get back into the game by holding the Golden Knights scoreless for the next four minutes and 10 seconds. Gannon went even longer without a field goal, stretching five minutes and eight seconds. As a result, Bloomsburg was able to generate a 9-0 run to grab a 50-48 lead on Lorenzo Christmas' sixth three-pointer of the game with 6:28 remaining.
Despite the offensive drought, Gannon was still able to hold down the fort and quickly regained the lead later in the half with seven consecutive points. Trailing 53-50,
Raphell Thomas-Edwards (Leicester, England/The Gateway School) converted a lay-up while being fouled. His free throw knotted the contest with 4:30 showing on the clock.
Thomas-Edwards followed with another lay-up to put Gannon in front, before
Adam Blazek (Erie, Pa./Cathedral Prep) stretched the lead to 57-53 with a lay-up at the 2:08 mark.
Unfortunately, that would be it for Gannon in regulation. After a Bloomsburg miss, Gannon turned the ball back over to the Huskies. Alssene Saintilus then got a dunk out of a time-out to sever the lead in half. The Golden Knights followed with a miss on the front end of a one-and-one and turned the ball over after an offensive rebound. To make matters worse, Jon Riles was fouled as Bloomsburg tried to tie the game and made both free throws to create the deadlock.
Gannon almost won the game in regulation, getting a three-point look for Blazek as time wound down. His errand shot was corralled by
A'Darius Porter (Stockbridge, Ga./Woodland), but officials ruled Porter's put-back came after the buzzer to force overtime.
Bloomsburg maintained the momentum during the extra session, scoring the first six points of overtime.
Tee Talley's (Frederick, Md./Tuscarora) lay-up with 2:04 left in overtime was Gannon's first field goal in five minutes and four seconds spanning back to the second half. But as was the case during the second half, the Golden Knights still had a chance to win the game despite the drought.
Talley's bucket drew Gannon within 65-61, before a long Blazek three-pointer from in front of the bench cut the deficit to one point with 49 seconds remaining. However, Bloomsburg was able to effectively run the clock down and pushed the lead to 67-64 on Riles' lay-up with 19 ticks left. A potential game-tying triple by Blazek was off the mark at the buzzer.
Gannon's biggest lead of the afternoon was a 24-16 advantage with 7:35 left in the first half. Saturday's contest featured nine ties and seven lead changes.
Blazek headlined the Gannon offensive unit with 21 points, seven rebounds and five assists while playing all 45 minutes. The junior reached the 20-point plateau for the fifth time this season and 14th time during his collegiate career.
Thomas-Edwards recorded his first career double-double with 19 points and 10 rebounds. Both figures represented career-highs. Blazek and Thomas-Edwards went 16-of-30 from the field while the rest of the team finished 7-of-28.
Gannon shot 39.7 percent (23-58) from the field, 35 percent (7-20) from three-point range and 61.1 percent (11-18) from the free throw line. The Golden Knights' field goal percentage was their lowest since November 29 and the free throw percentage was their lowest since February 20. Gannon out-rebounded its 11th consecutive opponent, producing a large 45-23 edge on the glass.
Christmas led all scorers on both sides with 23 points and six three-pointers. Riles and Saintilus added 17 and 16 points, respectively.
Bloomsburg shot 43.8 percent (21-48) from the floor, 52.9 percent (9-17) from behind the arc and 64 percent (16-25) from the charity stripe.
Gannon fell to 1-4 in its last five games that needed an extra session. Saturday's overtime battle was Gannon's first since a 62-58 loss to Slippery Rock in last year's PSAC Quarterfinals at the Hammermill Center. It was the squad's first overtime game on the road since a 77-73 victory at Edinboro on February 8, 2012.
Head coach
John T. Reilly's club dropped to 6-5 overall while seeing its season-high three-game win streak come to an end. Bloomsburg improved to 7-3 while snapping its brief two-game losing streak. The Golden Knights will now have 12 days off for the mandatory NCAA Division II Life in Balance dead period. The squad returns to action Friday, January 3 at 12th-ranked East Stroudsburg. Game time is scheduled for 3 p.m.
