CARSON, Calif.— Dominican men's basketball erased a 13-point second-half deficit to force overtime, but Purdue Northwest did just enough to hold on for an 81-77 victory Tuesday night at the Torodome.
The Pride (3-3) dominated in points in the paint 42-20 and held a 40-12 advantage on points from their bench. Jyrus Freels led Purdue Northwest with a double-double with 22 points and 12 rebounds, while Gregory Boyle added 12 points, five rebounds and three assists.
Christopher Williams II created the spark for Dominican (0-5) down the stretch with a double-double of 16 points and 10 rebounds to go with four assists and two steals.
Jordan Williams added his second strong performance in as many days with 22 points and nine rebounds.
Romeo Mays helped mitigate a size disadvantage for the Dominican with 14 rebounds and seven blocks to go with six points, two assists and two steals.
Jordan Williams sank a 3-pointer to tie the game 14-14 near the midway point of the first half, but PNW retaliated by going on a 12-2 run capped off with a fast break dunk from Jordan Doss to take the 10-point lead moments later. The Pride built the largest lead of the night at 31-18 as Doss knocked down a shot behind the arc with 7:28 left in the half.
Jaelen Ragsdale pulled up for a jumper in the paint before knocking down a 3-pointer to lead the Penguins on a 12-3 run to cut the deficit to just four points to keep them in the game. Jyrus Freels laid a ball in for the Pride for the last bucket of the first half to send them into the half with a 36-30 advantage.
Dominican continued their momentum from the end of the half as
Sam Averbuck knocked down a midrange jumper and then
Christopher Williams II found him in transition for a layup to take the 38-37 lead two minutes into the second half. The Pride retaliated as they forced three turnovers and took advantage on the other end as Toombs hit a three from the corner before Freels finished a lay-up in transition to make it a 47-38 with 13:49 left on the clock.
The pride held a four possession advantage for much of the next eight minutes until
Christopher Williams II caught fire hitting a 3-pointer to spark the comeback.
Christopher Williams II stole an attempted pass from Boyle and took it to the rim to draw another foul, knocking down both free throws to cut the deficit to just three points. Mays stole the ball away on the next possession and
Jordan Williams passed it ahead to
Christopher Williams II on the right wing to sink another 3-pointer to tie the game at 63 with 2:25 left in regulation.
Freels backed down his defender in the paint for a lay-up to help the Pride take a brief 65-63 lead heading into the final minute. Mays again made a big play for the Penguins in the final seconds as he grabbed an offensive rebound and kicked it back out to
Jordan Williams on the parameter who drove down the sideline for a reverse lay-up to tie the game at 65 with 7.2 seconds remaining. The Penguins held off an attempt from Xavier Hallinan for a reverse lay-up on the other end to send the game into overtime.
After trading baskets to open overtime play, PNW was able to gain a 3-point advantage on the Penguins when Timoth Gilmore knocked down a mid range jumper for the 69-66 lead. On PNW's next possession, Chandler Spring nailed a 3-pointer from the left corner as time ran off the shot clock to extend the lead to 72-66, but
Jordan Williams answered with a three of his own to keep it a one possession game.
After PNW went 1-for-2 from the line late, Dominican rushed down the floor and found
Christopher Williams II open again on the left wing for a 3-pointer to bring the Penguins within two with 3.4 remaining. However, Boyle knocked down both free throws on the next possession to seal the Pride's victory.
Dominican will travel next to Chico State for a 4 p.m. PST tipoff Saturday at Art Acker Gymnasium. Live video and stats will be available online.
