With the score deadlocked at 59 and the shot clock turned off, the Violets set up to play for the last shot. With less than five seconds remaining, guard Jared Kildare dribbled into traffic and passed it over behind the three-point line to the open Magee, who, as time expired, shot the potential game-winning basket. His shot from left of the top of the arc hit the side of the rim, bounced up and off the backboard, then down off the back of the rim and into the basket stunning the Tartan faithful packed into Skibo Gymnasium. The 62-59 win moves New York into a tie for first place with Carnegie Mellon atop the University Athletic Association (UAA). The Tartans fall to 17-4 overall and 7-3 in the UAA, while the Violets up their record to 18-3 and 7-3 in the UAA.
The Tartans fought back from a 35-27 halftime deficit to eventually take a 49-48 lead on a Brad Matta (White Oak, Pa./Serra Catholic) three pointer at the 7:45 mark in the second frame. This was their first lead since 9:07 to go in the first half, and the Tartans rode their momentum to extend their lead to seven at 57-50 on a three point play, the old fashioned way, by Clayton Barlow-Wilcox (Brookline, Mass.) with 5:05 to go. New York regrouped at this point and started hitting some clutch baskets. Kildare, the lone senior on the team, hit back-to-back jumpers to cut the lead to three. Both teams traded baskets, and after a New York free throw, the Tartans had the ball and a 59-57 lead with less than two minutes to go. Kildare, with the shot clock down to two seconds, connected yet again on a jumper to tie the game at 59. With 26 seconds remaining and the game still even at 59, the Tartans tried to go inside to Barlow-Wilcox only to have the ball deflected away and into New York’s possession. New York then brought the ball down and connected on their buzzer-beater.
Nate Maurer (Pittsburgh, Pa./Linsly School) and Marques Johnson (Pittsburgh, Pa./Upper St. Clair) netted 13 points apiece to lead the way for the Tartans. Johnson added a career-high nine assists, surpassing his previous career-high of eight at Brandeis earlier this season. Senior A.J. Straub (St. Mary’s, Pa./Elk County Catholic) came into the game having connected in 23 consecutive games from long range and that streak continued when he sank a trey with 18:05 remaining in the second half. Matt Basford’s three-point marksmanship was pivotal for the Violets as he connected on four triples en route to his game-high 16 points. Kildare added 10 points and six assists in the win.
The Carnegie Mellon men’s basketball team will next be in action when they host the Brandeis University Judges on Sunday, February 12 in what is scheduled to be a 1:00 p.m. tip. The two teams squared off on January 6 and the Tartans won on the road 103-85.