Jan. 21, 2009
Box Score
PHILADELPHIA - Idris Hilliard tipped in a Garrett Williamson miss in the frantic final seconds of overtime to give Saint Joseph's a 99-98 win over Duquesne at The Palestra.
Duquesne, which trailed by 18 early in the second half, took the lead on a Jason Duty 3-pointer with eight seconds left.
Saint Joseph's, which was out of timeouts, advanced the ball to the frontcourt where Tahseed Carr's jumper was blocked by Damian Saunders. Williamson missed a tip and Hilliard emerged from a sea of arms to tip the ball which passed through the net just before the final buzzer.
"We decided during our final timeout that we were going to play to win it," said Duquesne head coach Ron Everhart. "We got the 3-pointer ... turns out we got it about a second too early."
The win was the fifth in a row for Saint Joseph's (10-7) which remained perfect in Atlantic 10 play at 4-0. Duquesne, which trailed 53-37 at the half, dropped to 12-6 overall and 3-2 in the A-10.
Ahmad Nivins, who single-handedly erased an 88-82 deficit by scoring six points in the final 30 seconds of regulation, finished with 34 points and 16 rebounds. Hilliard added 20 and Carr 17 for SJU.
Duty and Saunders, who hit four 3-pointers each, led six Duquesne scorers in double figures with 20 points. Eric Evans scored all of his 13 in the second half for the Dukes. Duty's 20 points were a career high.
Duquesne, which jumped out to a 25-14 lead, was outscored 22-5 over the final 6:13 as Saint Joseph's took a 53-37 lead at the half.
The Hawks increased the lead to 18 in the first two minutes of the second half before the Dukes began to chip away. Duquesne held Saint Joe's scoreless for nearly 4:30 in putting together a 14-0 run that ended with a Saunders 3-pointer that gave DU a 76-71 lead with 4:24 to go.
DU led 88-82 with 44 seconds left before Nivins cut it to four with a tip-in. Evans then missed a pair of free throws with 27 seconds left that was followed by a Nivins layup. Nivins then stole the ensuing inbounds pass and was fouled. He tied the game on a pair of free throws with 14 seconds to go.
Aaron Jackson misfired on a 3-pointer from the top of the key at the end of regulation.
"Our guys started contesting defensively," said Everhart of the Dukes' second-half comeback. "We communicated well, got our hands up on some shooters and were able to get the ball out and get some easy baskets. Our kids played well together. We just didn't get that one last rebound that counted the most."
Saint Joseph's shot 50.0 percent to 44.6 percent for Duquesne. Nivins went 14-of-15 as the Hawks outscored the Dukes 29-to-19 from the foul line.
Duquesne returns to the road to face Fordham (2-14, 0-4) on Sunday, Jan. 25. The game, set for a 1:00 p.m. tip, will be televised nationally by CBS College Sports.
NOTES
• SJU outscored DU 42-24 in the paint ... Duquesne's bench outscored Saint Joseph's 28-14.
• The loss snapped a three-game road winning streak for the Dukes. The streak was the longest by a DU team since December of 1985.
• Duquesne leading scorer Aaron Jackson, playing his second game with a bruised tailbone, did not score until the 15:53 mark of the second half. He finished with 10 points on 3-of-13 shooting. Jackson led the Dukes with five assists.
