Pittsburgh, Pa. – Junior guard
Matty McConnell converted a layup with 10.8 seconds to play and his subsequent free throw after a foul by Glenn Sanabria on the drive helped lift the
Robert Morris University men's basketball team to an 80-79 overtime victory over St. Francis Brooklyn Thursday at the A.J. Palumbo Center on the campus of Duquesne University.
In a game that featured 11 ties and 17 lead changes, the Terriers (5-10 / 2-1 NEC) sent the game into overtime thanks to the heroics of Sanabria.
Sophomore guard
Dachon Burke gave the Colonials (9-7 / 3-0 NEC) a 66-60 lead with a dunk with 4.8 seconds to play in regulation, but Sanabria connected from deep with 0.7 seconds left to pull St. Francis Brooklyn to within 66-63. On the ensuing inbounds pass, freshman forward
Koby Thomas tried to connect with McConnell put instead turned the ball over with 0.6 seconds remaining in regulation.
Out of a timeout, Rasheem Dunn of the Terriers hit Sanabria, who turned and sailed a three-pointer through the net from the wing as time expired in the second half to force overtime.
St. Francis Brooklyn seemed energized by the two triples from Sanabria, opening up a 72-68 advantage with 3:33 left in the extra period after a three-pointer from Jalen Jordan.
RMU battled back to grab a 73-72 advantage with 1:32 to go, as Thomas provided a dunk and also hit a pair of free throws to push the Colonials back in front. That set up a frantic final 90 seconds that featured four lead changes and a pair of ties.
Jordan would again connect from beyond the arc in the corner to give St. Francis Brooklyn a 77-75 edge with 46 seconds left in overtime, but Burke would hit a jumper from the elbow to tie the game, 77-77.
Sanabria would give the Terriers their final lead with 18 seconds left with a turn-around jumper with 18 seconds left, but McConnell ripped down the floor on RMU's ensuing possession to tie the game for the final time.
Dunn would miss a three-pointer as time expired in the extra stanza, and Thomas came down with the rebound to secure the third consecutive win for Robert Morris.
"We try to explain to everybody how challenging this game can be," head coach
Andrew Toole said. "I don't know if we deserved to win the game in all honesty, but we figured out a way to do it, and I'm thankful for that. We made it so much harder for ourselves tonight, and I don't know where we got distracted. We have to clean up. Thankfully we're able to learn a lesson after a win."
Burke led RMU with 17 points and was one of four players in double figures. He also added eight rebounds and four steals. Thomas registered his first career double-double with 16 points and a game-high 12 rebounds, while McConnell chipped in 13 points, six boards and four thefts.
Off the bench, freshman forward
Charles Bain scored all of his 11 points in the first half as Robert Morris held a 33-31 lead at the break.
St. Francis Brooklyn was led by Dunn, who recorded a double-double with 17 points and 10 rebounds. However, he shot just 7-for-22 from the floor, including 0-for-7 from deep. Milija Cosic tallied 13 points off the bench for the Terriers, while Sanabria scored 12 points and dished out four assists.
The Colonials continue a three-game homestand Saturday, Jan. 6, when they welcome LIU Brooklyn to PPG Paints Arena for a 4:00 p.m. tip.
Follow The Colonials: Twitter | Instagram
