No. 2 Brandeis Slips Past Men's Basketball In Overtime, 96-94
NO. 2 BRANDEIS SLIPS PAST ELMS COLLEGE IN OVERTIME, 96-94
CHICOPEE, MA, Jan. 7, 2008 - Brandeis senior guard Joe Coppens (Rockland, MA) poured in a game-high 37 points and sophomore guard Andre Roberson (Springfield, MA) drained a 3-pointer with 3.0 seconds remaining in overtime to help the No. 2 Judges escape with a thrilling 96-94 win over Elms College in Monday night's non-conference men's basketball game before 231 at the Maguire Center.
With the win, Brandeis (10-1) tied the 1956-57 team for the best 11-game start in school history as the Judges won their third straight overall.
Elms College, which was trying for the program's first-ever win over a nationally-ranked opponent, fell to 8-3.
With the host Blazers trailing 88-86 and 1:29 remaining, Elms College sophomore point guard Juan Galdon (Holyoke, MA) drove past two defenders and converted a layup to tie the game at 88-all.
Sophomore forward Terrell Hollins (Springfield, MA) answered with a layup of his own 26 seconds later to reclaim the lead for Brandeis at 90-88.
Junior guard Aswad Thomas (Hartford, CT) responded with a fade-away 3-pointer - his third trifecta of the night - to put the Blazers up 91-90.
Roberson hit the first of two 3-pointers in the game with 16 seconds remaining to put the Judges back on top 93-91.
Junior forward Joe Esile (Milford, CT) knocked down his seventh and final 3-pointer of the night with what appeared to be the game-winner to give Elms College a 94-93 lead.
Roberson, however, provided the final heroics, as he swished in a 3-pointer with 3.0 seconds remaining to seal the victory.
"Nobody should have lost this game tonight," Brandeis head coach Brian Meehan said. "I thought Elms did a great job preparing for us, really did some things to disrupt us and they made very tough shots."
"Our seniors really stepped up for us and the only real difference in this game was our rebounding."
"This was one of the best games I've ever been a part of," Elms College head coach Ed Silva said. "Brandeis is a very good team and we played with them all night. I'm very proud of the effort our guys gave."
The Blazers played valiantly despite having forwards Nate Hawes (New Hope, MN), Malakie Berry (Enfield, CT) and Juan Alverio (Toa Baja, Puerto Rico) all foul out.
Elms College battled back from a six-point deficit (71-65) and 6:56 remaining following a 15-4 run that gave the hosts an 80-75 lead with 47.0 seconds remaining in regulation.
Junior guard Kevin Olson (Rockport, MA) knocked down a 3-pointer and Hollins added a layup over the next 35 seconds to tie the game at 80-80.
Galdon nearly won the game in regulation for the Blazers after converting the front-end of two free throws, but Hollins collected a court-length pass and knocked down one free throw to send the game to overtime.
The opening 20 minutes featured a total of 13 lead changes with neither team leading by more than four points.
The Blazers converted 13 Brandeis turnovers into 14 points, but the visiting Judges shot 50-percent from both the field (14 of 28) and 3-point range (5 of 10) to take a slim 41-38 lead at intermission.
Coppens led all first half scorers with 13 points on 4 of 7 shooting, while Thomas countered for the Blazers with 10 points and four assists.
Elms College had three players all score 20-plus points in the losing effort. Galdon finished with 24 points, including 22 after halftime, Thomas added 21 points, a game-high 10 assists and four steals. Esile finished with 21 points - all on 7 of 9 shooting from 3-point range.
The Judges had three other players besides Coppens reach double figures. Hollins finished with 20 points and a game-high 12 rebounds, Roberson had 12 points, including 10 after halftime and senior forward Stephen Hill (Brighton, MA) finished with 10 points.
Brandeis returns to University Athletic Association (UAA) play on Saturday, January 12 at New York University, while Elms College hosts Johnson State in North Atlantic Conference (NAC) play on Friday, January 11.