Regis Men’s Hoop Loses Overtime Thriller

WESTON, Mass. – Regis College stayed with nationally ranked Albertus Magnus College through the entire second half and overtime period, but the Falcons made plays on both ends of the court in the extra session to defeat the Pride, 80-75, Tuesday night in a Great Northeast Athletic Conference men's collegiate basketball game at Higgins Court.

Devante Thompson (Fort Lauderdale, Fla.) led Regis with 23 points, while Marc Trinidad (Bronx, N.Y.) notched his eighth double-double of the season with 16 points and 12 rebounds. Juvens Dalger (Oakland Park, Fla.) hit three three-pointers for the second straight time at home as he ended up with 13 points, and Josh Germain (Pembroke Pines, Fla.) contributed nine points, five rebounds, and three assists.

Albertus Magnus, ranked 21^st in this week's D3Hoops.com Poll, put together a 13-2 scoring run midway through the first half, capped by consecutive layups from Davon Warner, to open a 22-11 advantage. The Falcons would score six unanswered points later in the half to establish their largest lead of the night at 30-16 with 4:47 remaining in the first half.

Regis worked its way back into the contest, eventually cutting its deficit to one at halftime, 32-31, on consecutive three-pointers by Thompson. Dalger started the second half with a three-pointer to create the first of 14 lead changes in the game, but Warner answered with a three-pointer of his own to allow Albertus Magnus to retake the lead.

The Pride would score the next five points, featuring a dunk by Thompson and a layup by Dalger, but the Falcons battled back, pulling ahead 48-47 midway through the half on baskets by Jahmerikah Green-Younger and Marquan Watson. Regis rattled off eight unanswered points, including back-to-back baskets by Germain, to earn its largest lead of the night at 55-48 with 7:27 left in regulation.

The Falcons again pulled ahead thanks to a 12-3 scoring run over the next four minutes, but Regis responded with seven straight points, punctuated by a three-pointer from Dalger off an inbounds play, to jump back on top, 67-62, with 58 seconds left on the clock. Green-Younger hit a jumper and then two free throws, and Terry Dawkins followed with a layup with four seconds remaining in regulation to tie the game at 68-68, forcing overtime.

Damian Grant opened the overtime period with a layup, but Trinidad would convert a traditional three-point play to put the Pride on top, 72-71, two minutes into the extra session. Grant made one of two free throws to tie the game, and Green-Younger hit a jumper to give the Falcons a 74-72 advantage with 2:13 left in the period.

On Regis' next possession, Thompson made a putback while being fouled and converted the free throw to give the Pride a one-point lead heading into the final minute. Green-Younger put the Falcons ahead for good with a jumper, as Regis could not score on its final offensive chances while Albertus Magnus went 4-for-4 from the free throw line in the last 16 seconds.

Dawkins led the Falcons with 20 points and 15 rebounds, while Green-Younger and Warner scored 14 points apiece. Albertus Magnus controlled the boards, outrebounding Regis 61-45, including 28 offensive rebounds that led to 34 second chance points for the Falcons.

As a team, Albertus Magnus shot 38.8 percent (31-of-80) from the field and 75 percent (15-of-20) from the free throw line. The Falcons did commit 21 turnovers, leading to 19 Regis points, but the Pride struggled as well in the shooting department, hitting 37 percent (27-of-73) of its field goal attempts and 53.6 percent (15-of-28) of its free throw chances.

Albertus Magnus (13-2, 2-0 GNAC) hosts Saint Joseph's College of Maine Saturday, Jan. 25, starting at 3 p.m.

Regis (6-10, 2-1 GNAC) welcomes Anna Maria College to Higgins Court Saturday, Jan. 25, for a 12 p.m. tipoff. At halftime, the updated 1,000-point banner featuring the name of Ademola Afonja will be unveiled, with Afonja in attendance along with other Pride basketball alumni.