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Daemen University Athletics

Western New York's Premier Division II Team
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hamilton mbb vs lake erie
Deion Hamilton netted 22 points tonight, none more important than his layup with 14 seconds to go in overtime
79
St. Thomas Aquinas STACMBB 15-3, 7-1 ECC
82
Winner Daemen DAEM 15-3, 7-1 ECC
St. Thomas Aquinas STACMBB
15-3, 7-1 ECC
79
Final
82
Daemen DAEM
15-3, 7-1 ECC
Winner
Score By Periods
Team 1 2 OT 1 F
St. Thomas Aquinas STACMBB 33 35 11 79
Daemen DAEM 26 42 14 82

Game Recap: Men's Basketball | | By Mike Miranto, Sr. Associate A.D. for External Operations & Communications

Cardiac Kids Strike Again As Wildcats Down Spartans In Overtime

Wildcats Win Third Straight Nail-Biter, Knocking Off Three-Time Defending ECC Champs

AMHERST, N.Y. - A steal and layup by Deion Hamilton (Rochester, N.Y.) with 14 seconds remaining in overtime provided the last of six changes as Daemen College outlasted visiting Saint Thomas Aquinas College 82-79 in a matchup of East Coast Conference men's basketball titans at Lumsden Gymnasium tonight. With the win, Daemen improves to 15-3 on the season, and 7-1 in ECC play. STAC, the three-time defending conference champions, fell to 15-3 overall while suffering their first ECC loss of the season (7-1). 

The game featured a pair of heavyweight programs. Both teams came into the game highly ranked in the Division II Sports Information Directors of America (D2SIDA) East Region media poll, and both are nationally ranked as well. STAC is ranked No. 1 in D2SIDA regional poll, and No. 11 in the D2SIDA national poll as well as No. 12 in the National Association of Basketball Coaches (NABC) Division II poll. Daemen is ranked No. 1 in the region, and No. 17 in the D2SIDA national poll, while also receiving votes in the NABC poll. Since the start of the 2014-15 season, STAC ranks first (117) and Daemen ranks second (96) in overall wins by ECC teams, as well as New York State Division II programs. Tonight's win marked Daemen's second against a nationally-ranked opponent this season. They defeated previously unbeaten Saint Anselm College 78-72 on Jan. 2 when the Hawks were ranked fourth in both Division II national poll, as well as first in the regional poll.

Hamilton was the hero today, delivering Daemen's fourth straight win. The Wildcats' last three wins have come by a combined six points, and today's was the second where they erased at least a three-point deficit with under 30 seconds to play. Hamilton finished with 22 points as he knocked down 8-of-12 from the field and 4-of-6 from three-point range. He surpassed 900 career points in the win (now 917 total) while recording his third 20-point game of the season, and the ninth of his career.

Andrew Sischo (Guilderland, N.Y.) poured in a game-high 26 points, including 19 after halftime. The Daemen big man shot 10-for-18 from the field, and added 11 rebounds and two blocks. It marked his 11th double-double of the season, and the ninth time he's gone for 20 or more points. Breon Harris (Niagara Falls, N.Y.) also reached double figures with 10 points, and Darius Garvin (Elmira, N.Y.) scored nine off the bench, including some of the biggest points of the game. Two of the Garvin's field goals gave them the lead down the stretch in regulation time, and two more pulled Daemen within a single point in overtime, including his layup with 19 seconds left, preceding Hamilton's big play.

Freshmen Osbel Caraballo and Demetre Roberts paced a quartet of double-figure scorers for the Spartans with 17 points apiece. Caraballo, the reigning ECC Player of the Week, added 11 boards before he fouled out near the end of regulation. Jamar Sudan tossed in 16 points and six boards, and Kevin Lynch added 11 points and seven rebounds.

A sluggish offensive start for the hosts allowed STAC to open up early leads of 20-9, 22-11 and later 33-22. Daemen scored the final two buckets of the opening frame, including a coast-to-coast driving layup by Harris just before time expired, cutting the STAC lead to 33-26 at the break.

The STAC advantage went back to double figures when Lynch drilled a three-pointer on the opening possession of the second half. But Daemen whittled away at the lead, and eventually pulled even at 49-49 on a Sischo layup with 9:38 to play. The tie was short-lived however as STAC's Louis Griffith nailed a three-pointer at the other end to put his side back on top. 

The STAC lead grew to five points (54-49) when Caraballo corralled an offensive rebound and scored with 8:47 showing on the clock. It turned out to be the last two-possession lead of the game as the teams traded blows down the stretch and throughout overtime. Hamilton's three-pointer at the 8:31 mark was followed by a game-tying layup by Harris 30 seconds later.

Daemen grabbed their first second-half lead (59-57) when Garvin buried a pull-up three-pointer in transition with under seven minutes to go. STAC came back and scored the next five points, including a driving layup by Griffith that re-established a three-point lead (62-59) for the visitors. Daemen responded with a 6-0 spurt of their own, getting a lead-changing bucket by Garvin at the 3:46 mark, followed by two Jay Sarkis (Rochester, N.Y.) free throws after the STAC bench was whistled for a technical foul. 

This time it was STAC that pulled back even, doing so twice in the final 2:06. A pair of Sudan free throws knotted the score at 66-66. Sischo gave Daemen a two-point lead with 1:50 to go, but Sudan made good on another pair of freebies with 56 ticks left. Both teams came up empty in the waning seconds, including Harris' step-back three-point attempt just before the buzzer which would have won it for Daemen.

After Sischo got the opening two points of overtime, STAC scored seven of the next nine points to go up 75-72. Kameron Murrell drained a three-pointer, his only field goal of the night, with 2:29 to go in the extra session, breaking a 72-72 tie. STAC continued to lead, and a pair of free throws by Lynch with 27 seconds left made the score 79-76. After a timeout, Daemen got a quick deuce as Garvin drove the lane and scored. On the ensuing STAC possession, Daemen pulled out the full court press and forced a turnover underneath their hoop. Hamilton collected the loose ball and scored with virtually nobody near him, sending a packed Lumsden Gymnasium crowd into a frenzy. STAC raced the ball down the floor and got a go-ahead layup attempt from Lynch which fell off the mark as it was heavily contested. Daemen's Jeff Redband (Batavia, N.Y.) collected the rebound, and was subsequently fouled. He knocked down two free throws at the other end with 3.8 seconds to go. STAC's desperation attempt at the buzzer by Roberts was off, and Daemen emerged with the win.

Both teams made seven three-pointers, but Daemen made one more field goal (29 to STAC's 28) and one more free throw (17 to STAC's 16) while eking out their third straight nail-biting victory. STAC shot 45.9 percent for the game (28-of-61), while Daemen converted 43.9 percent of their field goal attempts (29-of-66). STAC's 14-7 edge in second chance points was negated by Daemen advantages in points in the paint (42 to 40), points off turnovers (19 to 12) and fastbreak points (16 to 12). The fastbreak points were especially important late as Daemen outscored STAC 14-2 in that category during the second half and overtime.

Tonight's game marked the 10th meeting between the two teams since the start of the 2015-16 season. The Wildcats and Spartans have met in the ECC Championship tournament in each of the last three years. Daemen has now taken two of the last three meetings with STAC, and tonight's win marked the second time they've defeated a nationally-ranked STAC squad (67-64 win over then No. 23 STAC on Jan. 4, 2017).

The Wildcats are now 42-9 all-time in ECC home games. Tonight's win was Daemen's ninth of the season at Lumsden Gymnasium, against only one defeat. Since the start of the 2011-12 season, Daemen is 91-14 at home.

The Wildcats' three-game homestand continues Sunday (Jan. 27) when they'll host the University of the District of Columbia for a 3 p.m. tip-off. The Firebirds dropped an 87-59 final at Roberts Wesleyan College tonight, falling to 9-9 overall and 2-6 in the league.

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