ARLINGTON, Va.— The Marymount (Va.) University men's basketball team entered the Capital Athletic Conference tournament on Tuesday night as the fourth seed, outlasting fifth-seeded St. Mary's College of Maryland in the first round, 69-64, in the Verizon Sports Arena.
The victory marks the first time since 2009 that the Saints advanced to the league semifinals, defeating Hood College on the road. It also marks the first time since 2008 that Marymount opened the tournament on its home court, defeating St. Mary's before eventually making a trip to the conference championship after a victory in the semifinals.
The Saints fell behind 7-0 early in the first half, but rallied back following a timeout. Junior Dimitri Rucker finished a tough bucket underneath and junior Alex Danko knocked one down from beyond the arc to get within four, 9-5. Approaching the mid-way mark, senior Michael Anderson completed a three-point play to ignite a 10-0 run. Freshman Josh Giardina notched a steal and sophomore Brandon Rogers converted on the offensive end to cut the deficit to three, 13-10. Rogers hit a three on the next trip and Rucker finished underneath to give the blue and white the first lead of the game at 15-13.
MU pushed the ball inside during the remainder of the half, as Rucker added four points and fed Anderson underneath for another bucket. For the half, the Saints garnered 20 points in the paint and registered seven offensive rebounds.
Rogers hit a crucial three before the end of the half to push the Saints ahead by 10, 35-25, heading to the locker room. Anderson and Rogers pieced together an impressive performance in the first half, registering 10 points apiece.
Rogers picked up where he left off, knocking down another shot from beyond the arc off the restart. Both squads continued to battle and SMCM rallied back into the matchup. Rucker continued to press on the offensive end, adding four-straight points to keep the Saints ahead, 46-39. At the 10-minute mark, the game was tied 49 all. The Saints pieced together a crucial 7-0 run late in the half, feeding Rucker the ball inside to take a 62-56 lead.
In the final two minutes of play, things heated up between the squads. Tied at 64 apiece, Anderson knocked down a deep three to pull the Saints back ahead. Marymount added a defensive stop on the next trip down and after burning the shot clock out, freshman Xavier Adams drove and drew contact for the foul. Adams went 1-for-2 from the line, garnering a four-point lead with 20 seconds remaining in regulation, 68-64.
SMCM missed a three-point attempt and Anderson scooped up the rebound and pushed the ball to Rogers who was fouled with 10 seconds remaining. Although Rogers missed both free throws, Danko brought down the rebound and the Saints sealed the victory 69-64, after Rucker went 1-for-2 from the line.
Rucker had a career night for the Saints when they needed it most, posting a career- and game-high 25 points, while adding eight rebounds. Rogers notched 17 points followed by Anderson who posted 13.
The Saints advance to the CAC semifinals on Thursday, February 23 at top-seeded and No. 3 Christopher Newport University. Tipoff is set for 8 p.m., in Newport News, Virginia.