AMHERST, N.Y. - A furious rally late in the game came up just short for the Daemen College men's basketball team as Holy Family University, the No. 5 ranked team in the preseason D2SIDA East Region media poll, hung on for an 89-86 win to wrap up the ECC-CACC Challenge presented by Western New York Knee and Orthopedic Surgery PC at Lumsden Gymnasium. The two-day event pits teams from rivaling leagues of the NCAA Division II East Region - the East Coast Conference and Central Atlantic Collegiate Conference - in pre-determined matchups.

With the loss, Daemen falls to 1-1 on the young season.  The Wildcats were back on the court today, less than 24 hours after dispatching of Wilmington University (Del.) in a 109-87 track meet.  HFU, which defeated Roberts Wesleyan College 79-61 yesterday, improves to 2-0 with today's result.  The Tigers are the favorites in the CACC South Division as they return 10 players from their 2014-15 team which went 22-8 overall, advancing to the semifinals of the CACC Tournament.

It was a 10-1 run for HFU, turning a slim 77-74 edge into the first and only double-figure lead of the ballgame, as the Tigers opened up a 12-point gap with 3:02 to play.  A tip-in by Derrick Stewart at the 5:40 mark ignited the spurt.  Stewart would score another tip-in basket during the run, the second one sandwiched around two Isaiah Gans three-pointers.  Gans' second triple capped the run.

But, following a timeout, the homestanding Wildcats mounted a serious rally, aided by shoddy HFU free throw shooting, which resulted in a chance to tie it up on the game's final possession.  Senior guard/forward Torrence Dyck (Rochester, N.Y./San Jacinto College) hit a three-pointer at the 2:13 mark, his fourth triple of the game to spark what turned into an 11-1 rally.  

A Ryan Grandits (Kenmore, N.Y./Medaille College) three-pointer with 25 second remaining cut the deficit to four (88-84) with 25 ticks remaining, and two Dyck freebies brought it to a two-point game (88-86) with 16 seconds left.  HFU's Reggie Charles split a pair at the charity stripe with 14 seconds left, part of the Tigers' 2-for-6 showing at the line in the final minute, putting HFU ahead by three (89-86).  After a timeout, Daemen's last-second potential game-tying attempt from Supreme Hannah (Rochester, N.Y./Eastridge) was off the mark as time expired.

Charles netted a team-high 20 points and added seven boards and six assists to lead the Tigers.  Stewart (17 points, 14 rebounds, four blocks) was named MVP of the ECC-CACC Challenge, and he was joined on the all-tournament team by Gans (16 points, nine rebounds).  Marvin Crawford came off the bench to tally 14 points, five rebounds and four dimes for the Tigers.

Arif Mehmetaj (Jamaica, N.Y./SUNY Delhi) was named to the all-tournament team for Daemen after scoring a game-high 24 points and grabbing a game-high 17 boards.  It's the second-straight selection to the all-tourney team at this particular event for Mehmetaj, doing so at the outset of last season before suffering a season-ending injury in the Wildcats' third game of the year, which just happened to come on the road against HFU.

Joining Mehmetaj on the all-tournament team was Dyck.  The 6-foot-5 senior slasher pumped in 15 of his 23 points in the second half.

Hannah was magical for Daemen as well, scoring a career-high 23 points, 14 of which came in the first half.  Grandits chipped in with his first double-double (10 points, 10 rebounds) in a Daemen uniform.

HFU used a 15-7 spurt which spanned the end of the first half and the start of the second to seize control.  The Tigers closed the opening frame with four-straight points in the final minute, turning a slim one-point lead (42-41) into a five-point gap (46-41) at the break.  Then, the guests scored 11 of the first 18 points over the first three-plus minutes of the second period to lead 57-48.  Daemen would get close on several ocassions, but was never able to knot the score or grab a lead.

HFU shot 46-percent from the field (34-for-74) in the game, and saw 11 three-pointers go through the hoop.  Daemen was nearly as good, shooting 45-percent from the field (30-for-67) and making 10 three-pointers.  The Wildcats held a 47-39 edge off the backboard, resulting in an 18-8 boon in second-chance points.

In the first ECC-CACC Challenge game today, Wilmington overcame their loss last night to defeat Roberts Wesleyan, 91-87.  The Wildcats were paced by all-tournament team selection Tyaire Ponzo-Meek who scored 23 of his 25 points in the second half, helping WU overcome a 13-point second-half deficit.  RWC's Tyrel Dixon was named to the all-tournament team as well, pacing the Redhawks with 25 points today.

Daemen is back in action on Tuesday, November 24 when Mercyhurst University of the Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference visits Lumsden Gymnasium for a 7 p.m. tip-off.