URBANA, Ohio – Freshman
Shaunn Monroe's three at the buzzer lifted Urbana over Davis & Elkins by a final score of 62-61 Wednesday night inside the McDonnell Center.
The much-needed victory snapped a six-game losing streak as the Blue Knights remain in the hunt for a conference tournament bid.
Urbana (5-16, 4-11 MEC) trailed by as much as 17 in the road win and overcame a 16-point deficit when it trailed 54-38 with under seven minutes. The Blue Knights outscored Davis & Elkins 24-7 down the final stretch, led by redshirt-freshman
Tayler McNeal who scored all 11 of his points during that span.
McNeal, who drew his first career start, knocked down a clutch three after a steal by
Mario Lacy Jr. in the final minute. That shot put the Blue Knights in position for the buzzer-beater after Davis & Elkins' Erkam Kiris went 1 of 2 at the free-throw line.
Urbana turned it on late from deep, finishing 4 of 4 from three-point range after starting just 2 of 19 from the beyond the arc. The Blue Knights missed their first 10 three-point shots in the first half.
Four players scored in double figures led by Monroe and freshman
Tehree Horn, who both had 12 points. Monroe missed all five of his three-point attempts prior to the game-winner, but found his stroke in the second half by hitting four his final five shot attempts. Horn drilled three treys and stuffed the stat sheet with a team-high five assists and four rebounds.
McNeal knocked down a pair of three's and went 5 of 6 at the foul line for his 11 points. Grad senior
Mike Ryan, who also drew his first start of the season, notched 11 points on 5-of-8 shooting with five boards, two assists, two steals and two blocks.
Ryan converted a key three-point play to slice the deficit to four, 60-56, with 1:46 left in regulation.
D&E only scored three points, which came at the foul line, after its leading scorer Donte Doleman fouled out with three minutes remaining.
It was the reverse trend for the Senators, who started the game 4 of 6 from three and moved ahead 23-6 on Doleman's trey with 9:33 in the first half.
Doleman finished with a game-high 15 points while Kiris added 13.
The Senators led by double digits at halftime, 34-24, and seemed in control during the opening minutes of the second period. However, Urbana outscored D&E 38-27 in the second half thanks to the late run and didn't allow a 3-pointer over the final 28 minutes of the game. Both teams shot 26 percent from beyond the arc.
D&E's last field goal made in the contest was a layup by Kiris with 4:03 remaining.
Free-throw shooting also came back to bite the Senators, who finished 9 of 15 (60%) at the stripe. The Blue Knights went 10 for 13 (77%).
The win is the largest comeback triumph since Urbana overcame a 17-point deficit in last year's 94-91 overtime win over Glenville State on Jan. 12, 2019. Ironically, that game was also won with a 3-pointer at the buzzer made by
Malik Jacobs, who attended the same high school as tonight's hero
Shaunn Monroe.
UP NEXT: Urbana will play host to West Virginia Wesleyan on Saturday with a 4 p.m. tipoff inside the Grimes Center. Wesleyan (8-13, 7-8 MEC) defeated Notre Dame College at home Wednesday night, 90-63.
