Men's Basketball Drops 86-84 Double Overtime Heartbreaker to UDC
Box Score BROOKVILLE, N.Y. (Feb. 27, 2016) - Junior forward
Greg Dotson (Abington, Pa.) recorded a career-high 30-point, 19-rebound effort, but the LIU Post men's basketball team lost an 86-84 nailbiter at the buzzer to University of the District of Columbia in an East Coast Conference tilt Saturday at the Pratt Recreation Center.
The loss solidifies the Pioneers (17-11, 12-8 ECC) as the No. 4 seed in the upcoming East Coast Conference Championship. They will host fifth-seeded University of Bridgeport in an opening-round match-up on Wednesday (Mar. 2) at 7 p.m.
Trailing 21-9 more than midway through the first half, the Pioneers erupted for a 21-4 run over a five-plus minute stretch to grab a 30-25 lead with 3:16 remaining. Junior guard
Jared Hall (South Orange, N.J.) accounted for the opening eight points of the burst.
Senior guard
Akosa Maduegbunam (Hyde Park, Mass.) netted a three-pointer and a lay-up to close it out.
Dotson, who led all players with 16 points and nine rebounds in the first 20 minutes, added eight points in the stretch, including a trey from the top of the key.
Nearly four minutes into the second half, UDC (15-13, 13-7 ECC) had cut the deficit to a single possession at 43-40. That was until an 8-2 spurt in a stint of 1:11 gave LIU Post its largest lead (51-42) with 15:01 remaining in regulation. Hall sparked the run with four-consecutive free throws, while Maduegbunam capped it off with a lay-up on the fast break.
The Firebirds fought back and eventually evened the score at 62-all at the 4:24 mark. In the final 1.3 seconds though, senior guard
Devon McMillan (Brooklyn, N.Y.) was awarded two potential game-winning free throws. However, McMillan's attempts banked off the rim and set up an extra session.
Following a deadlocked first overtime period, the two squads continued to trade baskets in the second. A Dotson two-handed slam off a backdoor pass by senior guard
Dillon Burns (Staten Island, N.Y.) put LIU Post up 84-81 in the final minute.
UDC then responded with a pair of freebies to close the gap to one (84-83), before junior guard Virgil Fleming (Chicago, Ill.) knocked down a trey as time expired to send the Firebirds to the thrilling victory.
In addition to Dotson's stellar showing, Maduegbunam collected 20 points and seven rebounds. Hall amassed 16 points, five rebounds and two steals. McMillan pitched in 11 points, nine rebounds, five steals and three assists.