Box Score SAN RAFAEL, Calif. – Xavier Williams hit a last-second three-pointer to give Dominican men's basketball a 67-66 win over Notre Dame de Namur at the Conlan Center Saturday afternoon.
Junior CJ Thomas was one of four Penguins (2-7, 1-1 PacWest) in double-figures with 18 points. Senior Jeremiah Gray added 15, freshman Jordan Williams finished with 14 and freshman Christian Futch chipped in with 10. Chazz Wade led the Argonauts (1-5, 1-1 PacWest) with 22 points
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RJ Louis got a steal and finished on the other end to put NDNU ahead 7-4 early in the first half. Gray answered with a layup and a three-pointer to give Dominican a 9-7 lead at the first media timeout. Gray later found freshman Romeo Mays with a no-look pass as Mays finished it off to put the Penguins on top 13-10. Mays then helped Dominican preserve that lead as he chased down Stephen Baity to wipe his shot away.
Mays continued to make his presence felt, later grabbing two offensive rebounds in the same possession, the second of which he put back himself to give the Penguins a 19-14 advantage. Gray followed that with a fall-away bank shot to stretch the lead to seven with just over seven minutes left in the half. After the Argonauts cut their deficit to five, Gray picked off a pass and found Jordan Williams for a fast break layup. A few possessions later, Williams banked in a three from the top of the key to put Dominican ahead by eight. Thomas helped them keep the lead, scoring in the paint and then putting in a pair of free throws a couple of possessions later, as the Penguins went on top 30-21. NDNU went on a 7-0 run to close the half, capped by a last second jumper by Louis, to trim Dominican's lead to just two going into the break.
Thomas and Gray hit back-to-back jumpers on the Penguins' first two trips out of the half but the Argonauts got a triple from Wade to keep them close. Shortly after, NDNU took the lead as Ty Peacock scored on a post finish in the paint. Peacock scored again on a fast break layup off an Argonaut steal, extending the lead to 38-34 just before the first media timeout of the half.
With Dominican behind 40-36, freshman Marcus Loadholt connected on a corner three and after a steal by Gray, Futch put in a layup to give the Penguins a 41-40 lead. The two teams continued to seesaw from there with the lead changing hands multiple times. After Dominican fell behind 46-45, Jordan Williams knocked in a three, allowing the Penguins to regain the lead with just less than nine minutes left to play.
With the score knotted at 48-48, Futch hit a turnaround jumper in the paint to put Dominican back ahead at the six-minute mark. Gray followed with a corner three, widening the Penguins lead to five and forcing a timeout from NDNU. Jordan Williams later finished in the paint and then scored in transition off a steal from Futch, putting Dominican ahead 57-50.
The Argonauts responded with seven straight points as Louis finished a layup and Peacock hit a corner three off an inbounds pass, bringing NDNU within two at 57-55. Louis then took a defensive rebound coast-to-coast for an easy layup to tie the game with less than a minute left, forcing the Penguins to take a timeout. Dominican turned it over out of the break, allowing the Argonauts to take a timeout and play for the last shot of regulation. Baity got a clean look at a three but his attempt rattled around before finally rimming out, sending the game to overtime.
Gray opened up the scoring in the extra frame with a three to put the Penguins ahead 60-57. Louis later put NDNU ahead 61-60 with a transition finish. Wade then converted both ends of a 1-and-1, stretching the Argonauts' lead to 63-60 with just less than two minutes left. Thomas did the same on Dominican's next possession to make it a one-point game. NDNU answered back with a tough jumper from Wade to make it 65-62.
After the Penguins failed to score and were forced to foul, Louis missed both free throws, keeping Dominican in it. Jordan Williams finished a tough shot in the paint to make it 65-64 and after Wade made one free throw, the Penguins turned the ball over with eight seconds left. After another pair of missed free throws, in what looked to be a potential broken play, Gray passed out of a double-team and found Xavier Williams who rose up and buried a triple, leaving just 0.5 seconds for the Argonauts. NDNU was unable to convert on their full court attempt as time expired as Dominican held on for a thrilling win.
The Penguins take the court again Saturday, Dec. 9, as they travel to Fresno Pacific for a 4:30 p.m. tip. Live stats and video will be available online.
SAN RAFAEL, Calif. – Xavier Williams hit a last-second three-pointer to give Dominican men's basketball a 67-66 win over Notre Dame de Namur at the Conlan Center Saturday afternoon.
Junior CJ Thomas was one of four Penguins (2-7, 1-1 PacWest) in double-figures with 18 points. Senior Jeremiah Gray added 15, freshman Jordan Williams finished with 14 and freshman Christian Futch chipped in with 10. Chazz Wade led the Argonauts (1-5, 1-1 PacWest) with 22 points.
RJ Louis got a steal and finished on the other end to put NDNU ahead 7-4 early in the first half. Gray answered with a layup and a three-pointer to give Dominican a 9-7 lead at the first media timeout. Gray later found freshman Romeo Mays with a no-look pass as Mays finished it off to put the Penguins on top 13-10. Mays then helped Dominican preserve that lead as he chased down Stephen Baity to wipe his shot away.
Mays continued to make his presence felt, later grabbing two offensive rebounds in the same possession, the second of which he put back himself to give the Penguins a 19-14 advantage. Gray followed that with a fall-away bank shot to stretch the lead to seven with just over seven minutes left in the half. After the Argonauts cut their deficit to five, Gray picked off a pass and found Jordan Williams for a fast break layup. A few possessions later, Williams banked in a three from the top of the key to put Dominican ahead by eight. Thomas helped them preserve that lead for a stretch, scoring in the paint and then putting in a pair of free throws a couple of possessions later, as the Penguins went on top 30-21. NDNU went on a 7- run to close the half, capped by a last second jumper by Louis, to trim Dominican's lead to just two going into the break.
Thomas and Gray hit back-to-back jumpers on the Penguins' first two trips out of the half but the Argonauts got a triple from Wade to keep them close. Shortly after, NDNU took their first lead since early in the first half as Ty Peacock scored on a post finish in the paint. Peacock scored again on a fast break layup off an Argonaut steal, extending the lead to 38-34 just before the first media timeout of the half.
With Dominican behind 40-36, freshman Marcus Loadholt connected on a corner three and after a steal by Gray, Futch put in a layup to give the Penguins a 41-40 lead. The two teams continued to seesaw from there with the lead changing hands multiple times. After Dominican fell behind 46-45, Jordan Williams knocked in a three, allowing the Penguins to regain the lead with just less than nine minutes left to play.
With the score knotted at 48-48, Futch hit a turnaround jumper in the paint to put Dominican back ahead at the six-minute mark. Gray followed with a corner three, widening the Penguins lead to five and forcing a timeout from NDNU. Jordan Williams later finished in the paint and then scored in transition off a steal from Futch, putting Dominican ahead 57-50.
The Argonauts responded with seven straight points as Louis finished a layup and Peacock hit a corner three off an inbounds pass, bringing NDNU within two at 57-55. Louis then took a defensive rebound coast to coast for an easy layup to tie the game with less than a minute left, forcing the Penguins to take a timeout. Dominican turned it over out of the break, allowing the Argonauts to take a timeout and play for the last shot of regulation. Stephen Baity got a clean look at a three but his attempt rattled around before finally rimming out, sending the game to overtime.
Gray opened up the scoring in the extra frame with a three to put the Penguins ahead 60-57. Louis later put NDNU ahead 61-60 with a transition finish. Wade then converted both ends of a 1-and-1, stretching the Argonauts' lead to 63-60 with just less than two minutes left. Thomas did the same on Dominican's next possession to make it a one-point game. NDNU answered back with a tough jumper from Wade to make it 65-62.
After the Penguins failed to score and were forced to foul, Louis missed both free throws, keeping Dominican in it. Jordan Williams finished a tough shot in the paint to make it 65-64 and after Wade made one free throw, the Penguins turned the ball over with eight seconds left. After another pair of missed free throws, in what looked to be a potential broken play, Gray passed out of a double-team and found Xavier Williams who rose up and buried a triple, leaving just 0.5 seconds for the Argonauts. NDNU was unable to convert on their full court attempt as time expired as Dominican held on for a thrilling win.
The Penguins take the court again Saturday, Dec. 9, as they travel to Fresno Pacific for a 4:30 p.m. tip. Live stats and video will be available online.
