Jan. 21, 2004

Box Score

Westminster, MD - McDaniel freshman guard Kyle O'Connor scored a career-high 27 points, hitting 5-of-9 three-point attempts, as the Green Terror men's basketball team came from 10 points down in the final 4:16 to stun Johns Hopkins, 83-75, in overtime Wednesday night at the Gill Center.

The Blue Jays, who dropped their second straight to fall to 10-4 overall and 6-2 in the Centennial Conference, led 68-58 after a three-pointer by junior forward Eric Toback (Ellicott City, MD/Mount Hebron) but would not score again in regulation. O'Connor ignited the McDaniel comeback with a lay-up at the 3:54 mark, and after a steal by Robert Wills, O'Connor drained a three-pointer to cut the Hopkins lead to 68-63 with 3:16 to play.

JHU senior guard Matt Righter (Clarion, PA/Lawrenceville Prep) then missed a three-pointer, and O'Connor found Wills for a lay-up to make it a three-point game wit 2:24 remaining. After a turnover by Hopkins freshman forward Matt Griffin (Glen Mills, PA/Penncrest), Will Talesnick buried a three-pointer to tie the game at 68-68 with 1:46 left.

Both teams had a few chances to win the game down the stretch but could not convert, and after a missed jumper by Toback with three seconds remaining the game went into overtime.

Talesnick opened the extra session with a three-pointer, and after Toback hit two free throws, Sam Anstead knocked down a jumper to put McDaniel up 73-70 with 4:08 remaining. Blue Jay freshman forward Danny Nawrocki (Syosset, NY/Chaminade), who finished with 13 points and a career-high 18 rebounds, hit a lay-up, but O'Connor answered with a jumper to give the Green Terror a 75-72 edge at the 3:28 mark.

JHU sophomore guard Frank Mason (Silver Spring, MD/Barrie School), who finished with a team-best 15 points, hit one of two free throws, but Anstead nailed two foul shots and O'Connor added a lay-up as McDaniel went up 79-73 with 1:19 to play. Nawrocki converted a lay-up with 1:02 left, but O'Connor hit four foul shots in the final minute to seal the victory.

The win snapped a six-game losing streak for the Green Terror, who improved to 5-10 overall and 2-6 in the league. McDaniel, which ended a 12-game losing streak to the Blue Jays, last defeated Hopkins, 79-70, in Westminster on February 19, 1997.

Righter finished with 14 points for Hopkins, while Toback added 13 and Griffin chipped in 11 points to go with eight rebounds. Alan Hoyt, who reached the 1,000-point plateau in the first half, scored 18 points for the Green Terror, while Anstead chipped in 15.

The game remained close early, as the teams were tied 9-9 before O'Connor and Anstead scored to give McDaniel a 14-9 lead with 13:32 left in the first half. The Blue Jays battled back, and a three-pointer by Toback capped a 7-0 run to give Hopkins a 31-24 advantage at the 4:07 mark.

JHU took a 38-31 lead into the break and scored the first seven points of the second half, going up 45-31 at the 18:07 mark after a three-pointer by senior guard Kevin Marquez (Oakton, VA/Oakton). The Green Terror slowly climbed back in the game, and a lay-up by Hoyt cut the Hopkins lead to 60-58 at the 6:57 mark.

The Blue Jays responded with an 8-0 run to take the 10-point advantage before McDaniel made its late comeback.

Hopkins will look to bounce back Saturday when the Blue Jays host Dickinson at 4 p.m.

Box Score:            1   2   OT      FJohns Hopkins (10-4, 6-2 Centennial)        38  30  7   -   75McDaniel (5-10, 2-6 Centennial)         31  37  15  -   83