Emory Men's Basketball Uses Late Three Pointer To Top Brandeis
A dramatic three-point shot by Emory sophomore Jake Davis with three seconds left in the game propelled the Eagles to a hard-fought win over Brandeis University on Sunday afternoon. No. 23-ranked Emory upped its overall record to 18-4, 7-4 in the University Athletic Association, with a 65-62 decision over the Judges who slipped to 12-10, 6-5 in the league.
Davis totaled a game-high 18 points, sinking seven-of-13 from the floor, including both of his opportunities from three-point range and the charity stripe. Senior Austin Claunch totaled 14 points while junior Alex Greven rounded out the team's double-figure scorers with 11 points.
Brandeis connected on 49 percent (25-of-51) of its field goal attempts compared to the Eagles' 45.8 percent (22-of-48). The Judges converted six of their 11 three-point attempts while Emory hit on five-of-14. The Eagles enjoyed a big edge in free throw shooting, draining 16-of-23 with Brandeis sinking six-of-seven. Brandeis enjoyed a decisive 34-23 advantage in rebounding but was hampered by 22 turnovers that the Eagles turned in 22 points.
The three-pointer by Davis negated a strong second-half showing by the Judges that saw them trail by a 32-22 count and halftime and still face an eight-point deficit, 50-42, with 8:53 left in the game following a three-point field goal by Greven. Brandeis then scored 11 of the game's next 12 points to take a 53-51 lead with 6:24 remaining on the clock. After a pair of foul shots by Claunch knotted the game at 55-55 with 5:10 left, a huge three-pointer by senior Justin Resnick snapped the deadlock and pushed Emory ahead by a 58-55 margin with just over four minutes left. After BU cut Emory's lead to one, a baseline jumper by junior Michael Friedberg with 2:19 left kept the Eagles ahead by a three-point margin. Facing a three-point gap, the Judges tied things up for the fourth time in the second half when Vytas Kriskus knocked down a three-pointer with 35 ticks on the clock. Holding the ball for the game's final shot, Claunch drove the ball to the left side of the lane, then kicked it out to a wide-open Davis who calmly drained the triple, his 24th three-pointer of the season.
Sunday's final regular-season home finale was Senior Day with Austin Claunch, Alex Gulotta, Justin Resnick, Chris Cohen and Corey Spraggins being recognized for their contributions to the program during their careers.
Emory returns to action on Friday (Feb. 17) when it plays at Carnegie Mellon in an 8:00 p.m. start.
