BROCKPORT, N.Y. – The Morrisville State College men's basketball team erased a 20-point deficit and used three overtime periods to shock #11 nationally ranked SUNY Brockport in the opening round of the NCAA Division III Championship Tournament with a 83-80 defeat Friday night in Brockport.
The Mustangs advance to the second round for a second straight year, and meet Hobart College who upended #21 Scranton earlier in the evening 94-81 behind an explosive second half. Both teams will tip on Saturday night at 7 p.m. in Brockport.
It was the senior class leading the way for Morrisville State, as all six were the lone Mustangs to notch points. Jailaan Kinsey (Syracuse, N.Y.) came up huge for Morrisville State, putting together a team high 20 point performance, while teammate Tom Wilk (Cortland, N.Y.) powered his way inside for 18 points, snagging a team best 12 rebounds and three blocked shots.
Brandon Hanks (Syracuse, N.Y.) added 15 points, dishing out seven assists, stealing five and collecting three blocks on the night, while teammate Jordan Prior (Cortland, N.Y.) who struggled early on, registered 13 points.
Kucjok Ater (Syracuse, N.Y.) recorded a double-double, netting 11 points to go along with his 11 rebounds, while Sherard King (Bronx, N.Y.) hit two crucial "and-1's" for the Mustangs for six points on the night.
Clifton Lyerly led Brockport in the losing effort, posting a game high 23 points, while teammates Brandon Caruthers, Matt Lee and Patrick Coyle registered 13, 12, and 11 points, respectively. Lee and Coyle collected double-doubles, combining for 21 total rebounds, while Caruthers assisted five.
Morrisville State was sluggish in the opening half, shooting a mere 28.6% from the floor on 8-of-28 shooting, as Brockport raced out to a 36-18 point lead at the break, hitting 13-of-28 from the floor.
What seemed like the hosts had the visitors rattled, the second half was a tale of another, as the tables turned and Morrisville State came out firing on all cylinders.
A layup by Lyerly early on in the second gave Brockport the 20-point lead, but the Mustangs began to chip away at the deficit at the free throw line, hitting the next 3-of-4 to cut it to 17.
Morrisville State took control from there on out and went on an 8-1 run over the ensuing five minutes to make it a 10-point game. Six of the points came from Kinsey who had the soft touch to bury short jumpers on the Mustangs offensive end.
Brockport was able to increase the lead back to 14 with 11:11 to go, but King came off the bench and fired up the offensive game with an "and-1" to cut it to 11 on the ensuing Mustang possession.
Again the hosts found a way to increase the lead to 15, but as with the rest of the night, Morrisville State wouldn't go away quietly as they rallied for a 7-1 spurt to cut the Brockport lead to nine, the closest they had been since early on in the first half.
Back to back buckets in the post by Wilk brought the Mustangs within seven with 3:48 to go, and two free throws by Hanks moments later dropped the deficit to six, setting up a 6-2 Mustang burst to make it a three-point game with under two minutes to go in regulation.
Not able to get open all night, Prior was finally able to get a good look from long range, burying a game-tying three with 1:21 left on the clock to knot the game at 62.
Brockport had a last effort look with less than a second left on the clock, but the attempt fell short and overtime would be needed to decide the outcome.
Morrisville State outscored Brockport 44-26 in the second half, hitting an astonishing 62.5% from the floor while the Golden Eagles struggled and hit just 25%. The Mustangs also dominated the paint, notching 22 points inside, nine off turnovers, and 10 on fast break opportunities.
In the first overtime period, both teams exchanged jumpers early on, but it was a three from Lee that gave Brockport the edge with 2:17 to go that left the Mustangs trailing 69-66 battling the clock. Prior had a look that fell short on the ensuing Morrisville State possession and following a missed Brockport bucket, the Mustangs were able to set up a screen at the top of the key that left Ater wide open to bury just his second 3-pointer of his career, and tie the game at 69, forcing a second overtime period.
Again in the second overtime, both teams exchanged scores early on, and with Brockport holding the 74-73 lead, Kinsey put the Mustangs ahead by one with 1:40 to go on a jumper from about 15 feet out.
Brockport regained possession following a missed shot on a steal at midcourt, and hit the backend of two free throws to knot the game for the fifth time on the night and force a third overtime period to decide the outcome.
With both teams fighting to get to the finish and be the victor, Morrisville State held the 80-77 advantage following a shot by Kinsey with 1:28 to go, but Bell hit Brockport's sixth three of the night from the top of the key, tying the contest for the seventh time with 1:11 remaining.
On the ensuing Mustang possession, Ater drove left and on the way up for a shot had the ball knocked out of his hand but not out of range of Wilk who tipped in the ball for a two-point Mustang lead, 82-80, with 45 ticks left on the clock.
Brockport had three chances on their next offensive possession to put one in the hoop but came up empty on the final try as Ater grabbed the defensive rebound out of the air and dished it out to Prior who immediately was sent to the line for two.
Prior hit the front end of the two shot foul to give the Mustangs the 83-80 lead with 3.6 seconds remaining, but one last effort by Lee, who had the hot hand from long range on the night, hit the backboard and dropped to the floor as Morrisville State posted the marathon win.
Despite a poor shooting first half, Morrisville State finished the game hitting 46.4% from the floor on 32-of-69 shots, while Brockport stalled offensively, hitting 33.7% on 28-of-83 attempts.
This is the first time in the history of the Morrisville State basketball program that the Mustangs have rallied from a deficit of 20 points in an NCAA tournament game and came out on top, along with the first time playing a three-overtime game.