West Palm Beach, Fla. – Senior guard Alex Franz (Catonsville, Md./Cardinal Gibbons) hit the game-winning three-point just as time was to expire to cap off No. 14 St. Mary's College of Maryland's comeback rally. The Seahawks overcame an 18-point second-half deficit to post an 82-81 win over Olivet College at the Trip Sports Cruzin' Classic in Florida.
Fran and junior forward Mikey Fitzpatrick (Bethesda, Md./Walt Whitman) worked in the final 2:35 of the game to put the Seahawks in position for the win. Down 81-74, Franz grabbed the rebound after senior forward Nathan Jennings (Grant, Mich./Grant) missed his second free throw and dished it to Fitzpatrick for the three-pointer at 2:27.
The two teams then each missed a pair of field goals before Franz sent Jennings back to the line. Luckily, Jennings missed the first and Fitzpatrick was there this time for the carom. Fitzpatrick took it down the court and laid it in to bring the Seahawks within 81-79 with 54 seconds on the clock.
St. Mary's (8-2) called a 30-second timeout (00:51) followed by a Comet full timeout (00:22). The Comets then turned the ball over with five second to go in the game, allowing Franz's game-winning shot with one second on the clock.
Franz finished with 20 points, including 13 in the second half, seven assists, and six rebounds to pace the Seahawks while Fitzpatrick picked up 12 second-half points to finish with 15 and team-best seven boards. Senior center Sam Burum (Bethesda, Md./Walt Whitman) contributed 14 points while sophomore guard Chris Hutchinson (Owings Mills, Md./New Town) added 10 off the bench.
Olivet (5-5) shot 65.6% from the field, including 7-of-11 from downtown, to the Seahawks' 45.7% en route to a 50-37 halftime advantage. Comet senior center Michael McClary (Bellaire, Mich./Bellaire) tallied 18 of his game-high 37 points in the first half.
The Comets opened up the second half with a 12-7 run to own an 18-point advantage with 15:02 remaining in the game. Senior guard Joey Smith (College Park, Md./DeMatha) fires off a three-pointer at 14:27 to spark St. Mary's to a 30-19 run, closing the gap to 81-74 with over two minutes left.
The Seahawks are now 2-2 in games where they have trailed at halftime, winning in overtime over York (Pa.) College on December 8 after suffering a four-point first half setback. Tonight's 13-point halftime deficit has been the biggest this season.
St. Mary's racked up 32 points off of 17 Comet miscues while scoring 48 points in the paint. The Seahawks also notched 26 second chance points as they out-rebounded Olivet, 38-29.
St. Mary's will be back in action tomorrow as the Seahawks wrap up action at the Cruzin' Classic with a game against Lawrence University at 2:00 pm. The game will be played at Nova Southeastern University in Fort Lauderdale.