ST. DAVIDS, Pa.--After trailing Wilkes University by as many as 13 points in the second half, Eastern University Men's Basketball battled back to tie the score with one minute left.
However, the Eagles' comeback came up short and they dropped the home league-game to the Colonels 68-64 on Saturday afternoon.
The Eagles, now 14-9 (7-5 Freedom), were led by Alex Nelson's 23 points and 10 rebounds for his seventh double-double this year. Collin Whipple also reached 20 points and shot 11-for-11 from the free-throw line. The Colonels' Kendall Hinze recorded an impressive 26 points and 10 rebounds, and teammate Jourdon Wilson scored 16.
Scoring just 18 points in the first half, Eastern's offense had to fight to get back in the game in the second half. Collin Whipple and Alex Nelson combined to out-score the Colonels 14-7 in the first 3:45 of the second half. Whipple's layup at 16:25 concluded the 14-7 run and put Eastern within four. But after that basket, Eastern could not score for the next three and a half minutes.
Then, over the next eight minutes, the Colonels maintained a four-to-eight point lead, but increased it to 12 with just 3:19 remaining.
Over the next 2:21 the Eagles exploded for a 14-2 run that included the Eagles' first two 3-pointers of the game. With 0:58 left, Alex Nelson tied the score at 64 when he finished off a wild play where the Eagles missed four layups/tip-ins.
On the defensive end, Eastern's Mitch Singer then stripped the ball from Wilkes' Jourdon Wilson in the lane. The Eagles then called timeout with 38 seconds left, and out of the timeout, Martin Soaries drove to the basket after a high screen. Soaries had a mismatch after the defensive switch, so he drove to the left side of the lane and elevated with three Wilkes' defenders closing in on him. The officials blew the whistle as Wilkes' Kendall Hinze collided with Soaries in the lane. The crowd erupted with excitement, thinking that Soaries would be heading to the line to shoot two free throws. However, the official indicated that the foul was actually on Soaries.
The Colonels then, with 27 seconds left, ran down the clock until Wilson drove to the lane with four seconds to go. His layup went wide, but Todd Eagles (ironically) grabbed the offensive rebound and finished the basket, his only field goal of the game, to put the Colonels ahead for go. Down two, Mike Donatoni received the inbound pass and tried to dribble past Wilkes' Wilson on the sideline. Wilson cut off Donatoni and the whistle blew. Again, the home crowd's hopes were dashed as the call signaled that Donatoni had stepped out of bounds, thus ending the comeback for Eastern.
The Eagles, now third in the conference with just two games remaining, can secure a playoff bid with a win against either FDU-Florham on Tuesday or against DeSales on Saturday.
Box Score
