Jan. 19, 2005
Box Score
BRIDGEPORT, Conn.-Will McClurkin hit a 3-point basket with 2.5 seconds remaining, lifting Marist (9-7 overall, 6-1 MAAC) to a 74-72 win over Fairfield University (8-8 overall, 5-2 MAAC) at the Arena at Harbor Yard. McClurkin, who had made four 3-pointers in the first 15 games, went 5-for-7 from beyond the arc and finished with a career-high 26 points.
The game featured 14 lead changes and nine tied scores in the 40 minutes, including two lead changes in the last 18 seconds. Fairfield trailed by three points at 71-68 with 27 seconds remaining in the game. Tyquawn Goode drove to the basket and dropped in a layup with 20 seconds left, making the score 71-70. Goode stole the inbound pass from Marist's Will Whittington and laid the ball into the basket with 12 seconds left, pushing the Stags in front 72-71.
Marist brought the ball to midcourt and called a time out, setting up a play. The Stags defense applied pressure to Marist point guard Jared Jordan, before McClurkin popped out to accept a pass at the top of the key. He released a shot from behind the 3-point line that touched nothing but net to regain the lead for Marist at 74-72. The Stags had 2.5 seconds left to try another comeback, threw the ball to midcout and called timeout with 0.5 seconds on the clock.
Goode took the inbound pass and released a shot immediately from 40 feet, but the desparation shot fell short of its target as the Red Foxes' Carl Hood applied the defensive pressure.
The Stags started the game in quick fashion, jumping out to a 9-3 lead, as four different players scored a basket in the opening run. Marist erased that deficit quickly with an 8-0 run, making the score 11-9 with 14:02 on the clock. Once again, Fairfield went to work and took the lead with an 8-3 spurt at 17-14 following Goode's three-point shot.
Marist led by as many as eight points in the first half, 28-20 with 5:38 remaining, but Fairfield pulled within a point by halftime at 35-34. Terrence Todd capped the late run with a three-point play with less than a second left. The second half was just a close as the first half with 11 lead changes. Neither team managed a lead larger than four points, which Marist held in the closing two minutes.
Todd led all Fairfield scorers with 21 points, while Deng Gai added 13 points to the cause. Todd also added seven rebounds for Fairfield, which tied with Maxwell for the team lead. Goode was the team's other double figure scorer with 11 points.
Marist also had three double-figure scorers, as Will Whittington (16 points) and Jared Jordan (12 points) joined McClurkin for that distinction.
Marist will host Loyola on Saturday at 7:30 p.m. in its next contest. The game will be the second of two in the McCann Center as the Marist women host Manhattan at 5 p.m. in the first game of the doubleheader.
