ARLINGTON, Va. – The Neumann University men's basketball team are the 2022 Atlantic East Champions! The Knights came from behind and won 61-59 at Marymount University on Saturday afternoon.
 
Tony James was named the MVP as he finished with 16 points and eight rebounds.
 
Jalen Vaughns netted 23 points. TJ Lewis added 11 points while Ryan Starr tallied nine.
 
The game came down to the final minutes, as the Knights tied the game at 53 on a jumper by Lewis with 4:21 on the clock. KJ Speller hit a layup with 2:46 on the clock to give Neumann its first lead of the game, 55-53. The teams then traded baskets and were knotted at 59 with 33 seconds left in regulation.
 
A jumper by Vaughns with 3.8 seconds on the clock put the Knights up 61-59. On the inbound pass, Starr stole the ball, and the clock ran out, making Neumann the 2022 Atlantic East Champions!
 
The Saints held the pace of the game for 35 minutes of action. Marymount built a 10-point lead 12 minutes into the game and took a 33-24 advantage into halftime.
 
Trailing by 10, 42-32, the Knights scored the next eight points to pull within two, 42-40. The Saints then scored the next five to extend their lead back to seven. A three-pointer by Starr and a jumper by James brought Neumann back to within two again, 49-47, with 8:47 on the clock.
 
The teams traded baskets, but Neumann could not pull even until the jumper by Lewis with 4:21 remaining.
 
With the win, Neumann (21-7) received the conference's automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament. The Knights will wait for the announcement of the bracket to see where they will head for the first round.