LENNOXVILLE, Que. – The Bishop's Gaiters were down three with less than 10 seconds remaining on Saturday when fifth-year guard
Kevin Davis (Baltimore, MD/Digital Harbor H.S.) stole the ball, drove the lane, made a layup and was fouled. He completed the old-fashion three-point play with 8.2 seconds left to tie the game at 80. The Laval Rouge et Or could not get a shot on the ensuing possession and Bishop's went onto win 93-86 in overtime in front of a boisterous Mitchell Gym crowd.
The win improves Bishop's to 3-0; they are the lone undefeated team in RSEQ University men's basketball while Laval falls to 0-3.
Relive the final moments:
A red-hot and rested Rouge et Or team jumped on the Gaiters early. Bishop's had played Thursday night in Montreal while Laval stepped onto the hardwood for the first time this week.
Laval outscored the Gaiters 23-15 in the opening frame while Bishop's bounced back to cut the lead to 43-39 at the break. The visitors were a blistering 61.5 percent from three-point land in the first half and 45.7 percent from the floor.
The game featured seven lead changes and was tied on five occasions.
The Gaiters seemed poised to run away in the second half. They led by as much as 10 in the third quarter but a late foul on a three-pointer gave the Rouge et Or life and they came flying back. The two squads went back and forth before Davis' late game heroics tied it at 80.
Laval scored first in the extra frame but Bishop's quickly answered with an
Abdul Kamane (Montreal, Que./Vanier College) lay-up. Kamane also scored on the next possession and freshman
Connor Kelly (Brockville, Ont./St. Mary's C.S.S.) recorded his own 'and one' to give the Gaiters all the momentum. Their fans carried them the rest of the way to the 93-86 win.
"They are very good in transition and have some guys that can make some shots," said
Rod Gilpin, the Gaiters' head coach. "I thought we did a good job in the second half but we let them back in and didn't rebound the ball at key times but I was happy with how our guys fought back in overtime and didn't bail.
"We have played good in spurts but don't have the consistency of championship team yet. We have to keep getting better. It's nice to be 3-0 but we haven't accomplished anything yet."
Kamane finished as the game's high scorer with 25 points. Davis added 21 to go along with five assists.
Nervens Demosthene (Terrebonne, Que./Cegep de Montmorency) rounded out Gaiters in double figures with 10 points. Kelly finished with eight.
All five Laval starters scored at least 10 points. Alexandre Leclerc led the way with 19.
Next Up
The Bishop's Gaiters are next in action on Saturday, Nov. 21 in Montreal when they face the Concordia Stingers in an afternoon matinee. Tip-off is set for 4 p.m.
Social Corner
Stay up-to-date anytime with the Bishop's Gaiters at
www.gaiters.ca or on social media by using @BishopsGaiters and #GaiterNation.
Coach Gilpin's blog is available at
http://gaiterbasketball.blogspot.com/.
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