Williamsburg, VA – Cornelius Robinson III pitched in a career-high 20 points, but Monmouth University Men's Basketball was narrowly held off by William & Mary Saturday, 78-73.
 
A back-and-forth second half early saw a 6-0 MU run capped by an Abdi Bashir Jr. three had the Hawks up 11 with 13:05 to go. A 14-0 Tribe run had them in front, and after Madison Durr tied the game on the break, a 13-4 William & Mary push made it a nine-point advantage. MU got it within three several times late but the home team sealed it from the foul line.
 
Two straight threes from Abdi Bashir Jr. 24 seconds apart gave Monmouth its first lead at 13:24, and Monmouth followed that with an 8-0 run featuring a three-point play from Justin Ray. The lead grew to nine on Jack Collins' three from the corner with 1:39 until half, as MU took a 38-33 advantage to the locker room. MU limited William & Mary to just 34% in the first half, including 0-14 to start the game from beyond the arc.
 
NOTES AND QUOTES
 
"Give them credit, those kids fought and made big shots down the stretch. They had to play one of their best games to beat us. I thought we outplayed them for 30 minutes and they got us for 10 and that's how they won the game." – Head Coach King Rice
 
-Cornelius Robinson III had a career-high 20 points.
-Andrew Ball grabbed a career-best 10 rebounds.
-Jack Collins posted his eighth game in double figures this season.
-Madison Durr scored in doubles for the 14^th time this year.

NUMBERS CRUNCH
-Monmouth limited William & Mary to 18% from three.
-The Hawks outshot the Tribe from the floor, 44% to 43%.
-Monmouth outrebounded William & Mary, 41-35.

UP NEXT
-Monmouth returns home to host Drexel on Thursday night at 7:00 p.m. That game will air on SNY, NBC Sports Philadelphia and FloCollege.