ALBION, Mich. – Lawrence Ridgell scored 14 of his career-high 21 points in the final five minutes as Albion College nearly pulled off the upset of second-ranked Hope College at Kresge Gymnasium Saturday afternoon. Ridgell's old-fashioned three-point play with six seconds left pulled Albion within two, but Colton Overway hit four free throws in the closing seconds as Hope sent the Britons to a 75-69 defeat.

Albion trailed 64-51 with 5:40 left. Alex Zavadil, a newcomer to the Albion lineup, started the late rally with a layup. Ridgell followed with layups on the next two possessions and he tacked on a free throw as Albion whittled the deficit to six, 64-58, with 4:23 to play.

The Albion student section was sensing an upset in the making after Ridgell hit four free throws and added his three-point play. Hope sent Overway streaking down to its offensive end of the court on the inbound play after a timeout and he drew an intentional foul while beginning his leap for a layup.

Albion also rallied from a double-digit deficit in the first half. The Flying Dutchmen surged to a 28-17 lead on Logan Neil's layup, but Luke Walker connected from long distance, Sean Hendon contributed five points on a pair of baskets and a free throw, and Zavadil knocked down a "three" as Albion trailed 30-28. Hope held a 34-30 lead at halftime.

Albion guards were effective at making aggressive drives to the basket. The Britons matched their season high of 30 free throws, making 20. Albion also shot 48 percent from the floor. Kolin Kazen and Hendon rolled up 17 and 16 points, respectively.

Hope's Nate Snuggerud led all players with 22 points.