Men's Basketball
The Patriots Basketball Team took on the number one seeded St. Edward's Hilltoppers in the first round of the Heartland Conference Tournament on Friday night. DBU, who had won eight straight games coming into the game, made a heroic effort to pick up their ninth straight victory. St. Edward's however proved to be too deep at the end of the night, after they used two overtimes to defeat the Patriots, 103-93. With the loss, DBU fell to 13-15, while the Hilltoppers improved to 23-5.
The first half saw the Patriots race out to an early 15-9 lead only to be answered by St. Edward's, who went on a run to retake the lead. The Hilltoppers finished off the half with a three-point basket from Shawn Weinstein, which gave them a 46-39 lead heading into intermission. DBU shot the ball extremely well in the first half connecting on 60 percent of their shots, however, St. Edward's hit 57 percent of their shots, including knocking down seven of 12 three-point attempts.
The second half saw the Patriots come out on a mission to win their ninth straight victory. DBU went on a mini run to get back in the game and then with a minute left to play, Junior Justin Pinckney connected on a three to tie the game and force overtime.
The first overtime saw each team make big shots but with 10 seconds to play the Patriots had a chance to go up three points. Junior Shelby Lewis was only able to connect on one of two free-throws, which gave the Patriots a two point lead. St. Edward's was able to tie the score with 1.5 seconds left in the game after Daniel Pierre was fouled and hit both of his free-throws.
In the second overtime Weinstein came out smoking connecting on two three-pointers and came up with a steal, which led to two free-throws made by him. The Patriots were never able to recover after the quick run by Weinstein and the Hilltoppers put the game away at the charity line.
DBU shot 56 percent from the field, out rebounded the Hilltoppers 37-35, but the difference in the game was free-throw shooting. DBU only hit 11-19 of their free-throws, while St. Edward's hit 31-42 free-throw attempts.
Leading DBU was Junior Brandon Wash, who scored 19 points, on eight of 10 shooting, while he also pulled down 13 boards. Senior Manny Montano scored 13 points, while Junior Shelby Lewis scored 13 points and dished out seven assists.
Pierre led the way for St. Edward's scoring 25 points, including hitting 13 of 15 free-throws, while Weinstein finished his night with 24 points and three assists.
The Patriots will look to advance to the NCCAA National Tournament for the second straight year when they host the NCCAA Regional Tournament, March 10-12, at the Burg Center.
