LAKE BUENA VISTA, FL – Junior guard Justin Robinson (Lake Katrine, NY/Kingston) put home a pair of free throws with 3.6 seconds remaining and Demetrius Jackson threw a half-court heave that caromed off the backboard as Monmouth University's men's basketball team beat an opponent ranked in the Top 25 for the first time in program history, 70-68 over #17 Notre Dame Thursday night. The win, also the 900th total victory in MU basketball annals, moves Monmouth to 3-1 on the season while the Fighting Irish fall to 3-1.
"I'm very excited for our kids and excited for our program," said head coach King Rice. "I give a lot of respect to head coach Mike Brey and Notre Dame, they did a great job of coming back in that game and our kids just weren't going to be denied tonight."
Monmouth got the ball with 32 seconds left and the score tied at 68, and Robinson allowed the clock to wind down before attacking the right side of the basket and drawing a foul from Jackson. He hit both free throws with 3.6 seconds to play to make the score 70-68, the eventual final score.
Monmouth led by as many as 11 in the second half, going up 62-51 on Micah Seaborn's (Fort Worth, TX/Prime Prep Academy) steal and fast break layup with 7:33 to go. Notre Dame answered that with an 8-0 push, getting a Zach Auguste put back and five straight points from Jackson, making the score 62-59 Hawks with 3:43 remaining.
Robinson put the MU lead back at five with two foul shots before Auguste converted a three-point play with 3:09 to go. Robinson followed that with a swift step back jumper but Jackson posted another three-point play to cut it to one with 1:21 left. Down three with the ball, Jackson again drove inside and drew contact, converting and hitting the foul shot to tie the game with 32 seconds left before Robinson put MU in front for good.
The Hawks went on a 15-4 roll between the 12:32 mark and the 7:33 point, nearly five minutes. Robinson started it from the foul line and Collin Stewart (Glenville, NY/Mekeel Christian Academy) continued it with a right-wing triple. Seaborn connected from in close, and Deon Jones (Wilmington, DE/Sanford School [Towson]) attacked the rim to make the margin seven ahead of Je'lon Hornbeak (Arlington, TX/Grace Prep [Oklahoma]) swishing a three to make it ten.
Monmouth came out of the locker room down eight, and tied the game within five minutes led by three Robinson layups and a bucket apiece from Seaborn and Hornbeak. The teams traded leads ahead of the 12:32 point when MU made its run to take a double-digit lead.
The Fighting Irish went up by as many as nine in the first half, with neither team taking a lead of more than four points in the first 10 plus minutes of the opening half. Steve Vasturia's three-pointer with 9:31 to go in the first opened the UND lead to five, and after Hornbeak trimmed it back to one on a transition lay-in, V.J. Beachem hit consecutive threes to immediately put the lead back to seven.
Robinson topped 20 points for the third consecutive game, scoring 22 points on 4-11 FG and 14-15 from the foul line along with four assists. Also in double-digits for the Blue and White included Seaborn with 15 and Hornbeak with 12, as the pair combined to shoot 11-22 from the field. Chris Brady (Greenlawn, NY/Harborfields) posted eight points and six boards as MU shot 40.4% from the field, 40% from deep and 81.8% from the foul line.
All five Notre Dame starters scored in double-figures, led by Jackson's 20 points. Auguste added a double-double with 12 points and 13 rebounds, while Bonzie Colson also had one at 10 points and 12 boards. Beachem hit four shots from beyond the arc as the Hawks outscored Notre Dame 19-0 off the bench, 12-0 on the fast break and 19-10 off turnovers.
Tonight's game was played in front of a tournament record crowd of 4,871 at HP Field House, besting the previous mark of 4,658 set in 2008.
Monmouth advances to play Dayton, who defeated Iowa in the final game of the day, on ESPN2 tomorrow evening at 9:30pm in the semifinals of this year's AdvoCare Invitational.
