Men’s Basketball Downed by St. Bonaventure 58-54

Courtesy: UAlbany Sports Information

St. Bonaventure, N.Y. – Michael Lee had 20 points, including the go-ahead basket with two minutes and 37 seconds remaining, as St. Bonaventure rallied for a 58-54 victory over UAlbany on Saturday evening at the Reilly Center.

St. Bonaventure (5-5) trailed 51-41 with seven minutes to play, but then ran off 15 unanswered points. Tyler Relph and Zarryon Fereti made back-to-back three-point field goals to begin that decisive stretch. Relph, who had all eight of his points during that span, tied the contest at 51 apiece by hitting a shot in the lane.

Lee, a 6-foot-9 forward who had 17 first-half points, put his team ahead for good when he buried a contested 15-footer in the lane. Relph, a senior guard, then drilled a long-range jumper from the left wing for a 56-51 advantage. The Great Danes, who went scoreless for nearly seven minutes, closed within a basket after Brent Wilson made a 3-pointer. But Fereti sealed the outcome by sinking a pair of free throws with 2.7 seconds to play.

UAlbany (4-4) erased a 37-29 deficit early in the final period with 11 consecutive points. Jon Iati, who had 12 points, hit one his four 3-pointers from the right side to start that uprising. Brian Lillis, who had 10 points and a career-high seven assists, converted a fastbreak layup and scored off his own steal to put his team ahead. Brian Connelly’s right-baseline jumper gave the visitors a 40-37 lead.

The Great Danes, who lost for the third straight time, still led 45-41, but expanded their margin with three consecutive baskets. Freshman guard Josh Martin fed Brett Gifford in the lane before finishing off a left-handed drive. Jimmie Covington made a jump hook to give his team its biggest lead.

"We only had two turnovers in the second half, and we had plenty of shots, we just couldn't hit them when we needed to,” said UAlbany head coach Will Brown, whose team shot just 30.6 percent in the second half. “I have to give St. Bonaventure credit for making big shots when they needed them. With each miss, we start thinking too much and that breaks us down on defense."

Wilson, who had 10 points, drained a three-point shot, as UAlbany took a 29-26 lead in the opening half. But the Bonnies tallied the final nine points of the period. Tyler Benson made a conventional three-point play when he was fouled on a fastbreak layup that provided his team with a 31-29 advantage. Lee, who grabbed eight rebounds and made 8-of-17 from the floor, added two free throws and scored with an offensive board off Fereti’s three-point miss.

Fereti finished with 12 points for the Bonnies, who have won three of four at home this season under first-year coach Mark Schmidt. The Great Danes, who did not attempt a free throw in the contest, shot 40.7 percent from the field and had just two of their 13 turnovers in the second half.

"We didn't communicate on defense,” added Lillis, who scored in double-digits for the seventh time in eight games this season. “We had our 5-man on their point guard, which isn't a good matchup, and he hit a big three."