EMMITSBURG, Md. (January 12, 2025) - Dola Adebayo hit a 15-foot jumper to beat the buzzer as Mount St. Mary's defeated Sacred Heart Sunday at Knott Arena, 73-71. With the victory, the Mountaineers improve to 11-5 (4-1 MAAC) for the season.
A back-and-forth contest ended up level at 69 all entering the final minute. With 40 ticks left on the clock, Adebayo hit a free throw line jumper to put the Mount up 71-69. Sacred Heart's Amiri Stewart looked for a quick response and missed the layup, but a review of the fight for the rebound awarded the ball back to the Pioneers. They would capitalize on a Tanner Thomas layup off the baseline inbound. With the Mountaineers able to run the clock down to two seconds, SHU opted to use their remaining two fouls to give, leaving the home side 3.5 seconds to drum up a play.
Xavier Lipscomb - who set a career high for assists in the game - found Adebayo on the foul line. The senior curled past the Pioneers defender, and pulled up to send in the game winner.
Carmelo Pacheco hit consecutive three-pointers early in the first half to stake the Mount to an 11-to-5 advantage. the Pioneers rallied to grab a 14-to-13 lead, but the Mount answered with the next seven points to make it 20-14.
Arlandus Keyes hit a triple to start the run that included an Adebayo bucket and a
Terrell Ard Jr. basket. Leading 26-22, the Mount used another 7-0 run to take a double-digit lead. Abdou Khadre Kebe hit 1-of-2 at the line before
Jedy Cordilia scored the next six points to cap the run for a 33-22 advantage. The Mount went to the locker room with a 41-32 lead.
Sacred Heart opened the second half with a 14-0 run to take a 48-to-41 advantage with 15 minutes remaining. A Tanner Thomas basket gave the Pioneers its biggest lead, 54-46, with 12:53 on the clock. The Mount got back into the game with an 11-to-3 spurt to tie the score at 57-57. Lipscomb had eight points during the run, including a three-pointer that tied the score. There were five lead changes and five ties for the final eight minutes of the game. A
Javon Ervin tip-in put the Mount on top, 67-66, with 3:18 on the clock. The Mount got a stop, and Pacheco hit two free throws to make it 69-66. Sacred Heart's Griffin Barouk drained a three to tie the score ot 69-69, setting up the exciting conclusion.
Adebayo led the Mountaineers in points with 15, followed by 14 from Pacheco. Lipscomb tallied 13 assists to blow past his previous career high of seven, and added 10 points to secure a double-double.
Sacred Heart falls to 6-10 and 2-3 in the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference. Tanner Thomas led the game for scoring with 25 points, and was one of four Pioneers in double figures.
GAME NOTES:
- Mount St. Mary's now holds a 31-15 lead in the all-time series against Sacred Heart. The two teams are former Northeast Conference rivals. The Mount was in the NEC from 1989-2022 while Sacred Heart was an NEC member from 1999-2024. The Mount is now 18-6 all-time at home against the Pioneers.
- Lipcomb's 13 assists are the most by a Mount player in a game since Riley Inge registered 13 dimes against LIU on January 5, 1994. It is also his first career double-double.
- The Mount hit 12-of-31 (.387) from three-point range in the win. The 12 three-point field goals are the most in a game by the Mountaineers this season.
- Mount St. Mary's had 20 assists in the game, the fourth time this season the Mount has posted 20 or more assists in a game.
- The Mount win at home on a buzzer beater was when Deandre Thomas hit a three-pointer to beat Howard, 72-70, on Nov. 30, 2021.
UP NEXT: The Mount travels to Rider for a Thursday (Jan. 16) showdown. Tip off is 7 p.m. from Lawrenceville, New Jersey.
