GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. -- The Siena Heights men's basketball team rallied in the final seconds to earn their fourth straight win over Wolverine-Hoosier Athletic Conference (WHAC) opponent Cornerstone on Wednesday night. PJ Austin (Senior, Cleveland, Ohio) drained the game-winning three-pointer with two seconds left in the game.
THE BASICS
Final Score: Siena Heights 78, Cornerstone 75
Location: Grand Rapids, Michigan (Mol Arena)
Records: Siena Heights (10-11, 7-5 WHAC), Cornerstone (13-8, 7-5 WHAC)
HOW IT HAPPENED
The Saints jumped out to an 11-6 lead after DeMarco Dickerson (Senior, Detroit, Mich.) made a three-point shot at the 16:55 mark. The Golden Eagled rallied to take the lead 19-18 as a layup was good by Nick Dekkenga at 11:00 on the clock. Cornerstone maintained momentum as they gained an eight-point lead (31-23) after a layup was good by Christian Rodriguez with 5:51 remaining in the first half. Siena cut the deficit to two-points (35-33) as Kevin Rice (Junior, Detroit, Mich.) made a layup and Chad Elliott (Sophomore, Brookpark, Ohio) made a pair of free throws as the game went into intermission.
The teams traded possession for the majority of the second half as the score was close. The Saints increased the lead to eight-points (68-60) as they scored seven straight points sparked by a layup made by Kevin Smith II (Senior, Colombus, Ohio) at the 7:42 mark. The Golden Eagles tied things up at 71's as a layup was good by Cory Ainsworth with 3:06 left on the clock. The remainder of the half was neck and neck as each team exchanged one point leads over each other. Austin drained a three-point shot with two seconds left in the game to give the Siena the 78-75 victory as the final push for Cornerstone came up short.
TOP SAINTS
• Dickerson tallied 23 points, four rebounds, a team-high of two assists, and one steal. He went 7-14 from the floor, 2-4 from beyond the arc, and 7-8 on free-throw attempts.
• Keith Jordan Jr. (Senior, Toledo, Ohio) contributed 17 points, nine rebounds, and one steal. He went 5-18 from the floor, 1-4 on three-point attempts, and a perfect 6-6 from the charity stripe.
• Smith earned 15 points, one rebound, and a team-high of two assists. He went 5-8 from the floor and 5-7 on free-throw attempts.
• Rice had a team-high of 10 rebounds.
THE OPPOSITION
• Ainsworth led the Golden Eagles with 22 points, seven rebounds, one assist, and a team-high of two blocks. He went 10-12 from the floor and 2-2 from the charity stripe.
• Rodriguez tallied 19 points, one rebound, a team-high of six assists and two steals. He went 6-16 from the floor and 3-8 on three-point attempts, and 4-6 on free-throw attempts.
• Tyler Baker and Trent Summerfield each contributed eight points.
• Cater Nyp had a team-high of nine rebounds.
UP NEXT
The Saints face Indiana Tech in a road Wolverine-Hoosier Athletic Conference (WHAC) matchup on Saturday, January 25th. The game is scheduled to tip-off at 3:00 p.m., EST.
