FAIRMONT, W. Va. – Urbana University men's basketball was dealt a tough blow Wednesday night as Fairmont State's Dale Bonner swished a half-court prayer at the buzzer, lifting the Fighting Falcons over the Blue Knights, 81-78, inside Joe Retton Arena.
Urbana (3-10, 2-5 MEC) nearly doubled up Fairmont (10-2, 5-2 MEC) in total time with a lead, but the hosts capitalized on a late Blue Knight turnover to overcome a three-point deficit in the final minute.
The largest lead in the game was six as the tightly-contested matchup featured 21 lead changes. Anytime Urbana found an inch of breathing room, the Falcons responded to tie the game.
Drew Thomas, who led Urbana with a season-high 18 points, put the Blue Knights up 75-72 with 1:09 to go, but FSU's Jacob Brown, an unlikely hero, knocked down a trey on the next possession to even it up. It was only Brown's second made three on 10 attempts this season.
Then, a turnover on Urbana's ensuing possession led to a go-ahead three made by FSU's Kenzie Melko with seven seconds remaining. The Blue Knights got the ball to half court and called timeout with three seconds. After another timeout by Fairmont, Urbana won the chess match with a wide open shot for Matt Ashley, who buried a corner-pocket three in front of the Urbana bench.
Unfortunately, it left just enough time left for Fairmont to in-bound the ball and get off a last-second heave which found the bottom of the net.
Urbana tied its season-best shooting percentage at 51.7 percent (31-60) overall. The Blue Knights made 6 of 21 from beyond the arc and finished 10 for 11 at the charity stripe. UU also held the edge in rebounds, 35-27, but Fairmont took advantage with 28 points off 16 Blue Knight turnovers.
Thomas recorded 11 of his 18 points over the final six minutes of the game. Ashley ended up with a season-high 16 points on 7-of-11 shooting in only 15 minutes off the bench.
Mario Lacy Jr. also reached double figures with 13 points.
Tehree Horn,
Kyle Kegley and
Shaunn Monroe each chipped in with seven points. Horn grabbed a team-best seven rebounds.
Fairmont State's Bonner led all scorers with 20 points, nine assists and six steals. Melko finished with 18 points while Cole VonHandorf had 13. The Falcons shot 50 percent overall on the night and made 8 of 21 from three-point range. They made 6 of 12 from beyond the arc in the second half.
UP NEXT: Urbana returns home Saturday looking to snap a three-game slide as it hosts MEC newcomer Frostburg State at 4 p.m. inside the Grimes Center. The Bobcats will enter the matchup with a 6-7 (3-4 MEC) record and winners of four straight following a three-point home win over Notre Dame College on Wednesday, 72-69.
