by DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. – The second-ranked Embry-Riddle men’s basketball team bid farewell to The Sun Conference on Tuesday night in the ICI Center, and the goodbye couldn’t have been sweeter. The Eagles (32-1) overcame a 14-point second half deficit, and trailed by seven with four minutes left before forcing overtime and ultimately coming away with the 2015 Sun Conference Tournament crown, 90-86 over third-seeded Southeastern (18-12) in the program’s final appearance in a league contest.
Embry-Riddle got 27 points and nine assists from tournament MVP Dalton Barnes and 19 points and seven steals from DeForest Carter (Seminole Tribe of Florida) to counteract a 38-point performance from SEU’s Andre’ Winston. The Eagles will now await the bracket release for the 2015 NAIA II National Tournament which is scheduled for 9 p.m. (ET) tomorrow, March 4.
The tournament crown was the 11th in program history and came after the Blue and Gold claimed the regular season title for the ninth time in 27 seasons of intercollegiate basketball. The Eagles finished undefeated at home (20-0), the second time ERAU has done that (2005-06) in program history.
After a first half that saw the Fire shoot 54 percent from the field and 71 percent from beyond the arc, the Eagles trailed 39-36 and the visitors stepped on the gas to begin the second period, going on a 16-5 run to claim a 14-point cushion on a Winston three-pointer at the 13:53 mark. The Eagles traded baskets with the Fire for the next few possessions and again Southeastern went ahead up 14 with two free throws by Tana Pritchard (10:17).
Facing their largest second-half deficit of the season, the Eagles went to work, starting with a Carter layup and then a Barnes and-one layup to cut the lead to 59-50. Barnes picked the pocket of Xavier Burrows on the next SEU possession and layed the ball in for a personal 5-0 run, but the Fire answered back with four straight to go back uo double-digits, 63-52.
Senior Jason Powell hit his lone shot of the night on the next Embry-Riddle possession, and it was a big one, sparking a run by the home team that including one of three triples on the night from Daniel Kiesling, two straight Carter steals and layups from Barnes and Carter as the Eagles got to within 67-66 at the 2:22 mark.
Carter came up big once again on Southeastern’s next trip down the floor, stripping the ball from Timothy Mitchell and finding Barnes alone in the front court as the Eagles grabbed their first lead of the half at 68-67.
A clutch three from Larry Taylor pushed the Fire back in front, but Barnes found Ridder open in the corner for the junior’s own trey and a 71-70 Eagle lead with 67 seconds left in regulation.
Winston hit another big three with 51 seconds left before Carter found Barnes for a layup on which he was fouled. Tied at 73-73, Barnes missed the and-one opportunity but the Eagle defense did not allow SEU to attempt a shot in the final 30 seconds as the game moved to overtime.
Cesar Pastrana connected on a jumper in the lane for the first bucket of overtime, but Winston quickly answered with a layup on the other end.
With 3:52 on the clock, Carter got the ball to Kiesling who hit perhaps the biggest shot of the night, a three-pointer that gave the hosts a 78-75 lead, a lead that was never given back.
An emoty offensive possession for SEU turned into a layup for Barnes on a nice pass from Pastrana, and after an emphatic Carter block on a Pritchard layup the senior pushed the Eagle advantage to 82-75 with a layup at the 2:10 mark.
The Fire wouldn’t go away as Taylor dribbled up the floor and nailed a trey to cut the lead to four, but Kiesling made good on two shots from the charity stripe to extend the cushion back to six at 84-78.
Winston and Barnes traded free throws on the next two possessions, but another Winston trey cut the lead to 86-83 with 32 seconds left.
Ridder missed both free throw opportunities on the other end, but got his own rebound after the second shot and went 1-for-2 the second time around.
Embry-Riddle led 88-83 with 17 ticks on the clock and Winston connected from long range again, this time being fouled in the process. Winston’s free throw was no good and Carter grabbed the rebound and was immediately fouled with seven seconds left and the 2014-15 Sun Conference Player of the Year iced the game, making both free throws to give ERAU a 90-86 lead.
Winston’s three with two seconds left was off the mark, as was Mitchell’s tip-in and the celebration began in the ICI Center.
The Fire shot 56 percent for the game and finished 12-of-19 from three, including an 8-for-11 effort by Winston. Taylor scored 18 and Pritchard added 10 as the only other Fire players in double-figures.
Barnes’ 27 points came on 9-for-16 shooting and a 9-for-10 clip at the free throw line. Barnes’ nine assists were a career-high. Carter dished out six assists and grabbed five rebounds in addition to his 19 points and seven steals while Kiesling scored 13 points and had seven boards. Ridder reached double-figures with 11 points and Pastrana was one point shy of a double-double with nine points and 11 rebounds.
The game marked the final home contest for seniors Carter, Powell, Pastrana, Brandon Serle, Andy Schleitwiler and Hudson Cadet and the final NAIA contest played in the ICI Center for the Blue and Gold.
The bracket release can be viewed online at www.NAIANetwork.com tomorrow evening at 9 p.m. (ET)
