Looking to extend an impressive win streak that began on November 17, Gordon College Men's Basketball welcomed Roger Williams University in a Commonwealth Coastal Conference (CCC) showdown today and bested the guest Hawks, 94-91, in an overtime nail-biter to improve to 15-1 overall (7-0 CCC). The loss drops RWU to to 8-8 overall and 5-2 in league play.
 
Eric Demers led all scorers with 35 points and six rebounds, while teammate Garrison Duvivier led all rebounders with 17 while also adding a gritty 33 points and Noah Szilagyi chipped in 10 points to the win.
 
Austin Coene (Sr./Tyngsborough, Mass.) led the Hawks with 34 points, nine rebounds, and seven assists, while Rich Pugliese (Jr./Middlebury, Conn.) and Jj Pfohl (So./Trumbull, Conn.) scored 18 and 12 points, respectfully.
 
How It Happened

• The Hawks controlled the first half of the game shooting 55.2 percent from the field. With just under 10 minutes to play they extended their lead to 17 off a three from Bryan Donavon (So./Gainesville, Fl.) and a layup by Will Pineo (Fr./South Windsor, Conn.), giving them their largest lead of the game. A Demers conversion from behind the arc in the final minute, though, cut the Hawks' lead to nine going into halftime.
• The Scots fought back in the second frame, shrinking the Hawks' lead to one with a little over five minutes to go thanks to a blocked shot and converted dunk on the other end by Parker Omslaer.
• With the game on the line, Gordon tied things up for the first time since the 16th of the first half after Demers sank a deep contested three pointer to send the game to extra time.
• Determined to get the W, the Scots' shooting proved to be too much for the Hawks in overtime as they shot 71.4 percent from the field to secure the three-point win.

Beyond The Box Score

• Garrison Duvivier's 17 rebounds extends his career total to 1,052, solidifying him as Gordon's leading rebounder by 20 rebounds. 
• Demers and Duvivier poured in season-highs in points with 35 and 33, respectively.
• Said Head Coach Tod Murphy: "That was a miracle finish. I give Roger Williams credit for playing a great game, but our guys showed a lot of guts down the stretch of this game and in overtime. I really have no words for what happened tonight. I guess this was a gift from God."