It was the moment everyone had waited for. After being the hero last Thursday night with a buzzer-beating floater that sunk Marist and pushed the Stags’ men’s basketball team to within a half-game of first place in the MAAC, junior guard Terrance Todd handled the ball on the right sideline, heading towards the hoop with his team trailing first place Niagra 76-74.
In his hands Todd had a ball that, if it went through the hoop, could have propelled the Stags into sole possession of first place in the conference with just four games to go.
But those dreams faded when, to the shock of Todd and the season best 3,217 fans at the Arena at Harbor Yard, he was whistled for an offensive foul, giving back the ball, and league supremacy, to the Purple Eagles, who added two foul shots for a 78-74 win.
Like nearly everyone else dressed in red and white, Todd was certain when he heard the whistle on his way to the hoop that he had been fouled and was heading to the free-throw line to tie the game.
“It should have been a tie game,” a dejected Todd said after the game. “I was going to hit the two foul shots and we were going to win it in overtime.”
But whatever would have happened is moot. The Stags found themselves in a hole, looking to rebound Wednesday night against rival contender Rider at the Arena.
“Everyone’s disappointed with the loss, but no one’s feeling sorry for us,” said junior guard Michael Bell.
Coach Tim O’Toole didn’t hide his disappointment with the officials, but said the Stags dug themselves into a hole on the court, regardless of the way things panned out in the final ten seconds of the game.
“We tell our team all the time: there are no excuses, no alibis; we lost,” he said. “I expect them to come ready to go and not to be down by 15 points in the first half.
“Those guys showed character [in coming back from a double-digit deficit], but it’s just not good enough.”
O’Toole attributed the sub-par play in part to the fact that his two starting post players – Deng Gai ’05 and DeWitt Maxwell ’06 – were limited to a combined 56 minutes because of foul trouble, and that senior captain Tyquawn Goode fouled out of the game with more than eight minutes remaining.
But with Maxwell and Gai on the bench, reserves Marty O’Sullivan ’07 and Geoff Middleton ’08 held down the fort, chipping five points off the Niagara lead and bringing the game to within reach.
Seeing his largest amount of significant minutes in several games, the recently slumping Bell played spirited basketball in the second half, finishing with 13 points in 24 minutes and making several key defensive stops.
Coming into Wednesday’s game with Rider, the Stags (12-11, 9-5 MAAC) trailed the Broncs (14-9, 10-4 MAAC) by a half-game in the league standings, and the Purple Eagles (16-7, 11-4 MAAC) by a game and a half.
A loss would have mathematically eliminated the Stags from contention for the much-coveted top seed and two round bye in the MAAC tournament, which begins March 3 in Buffalo, N.Y. With a win though, the Stags remain in contention, and could stand a chance if they beat St. Peter’s, Iona and Loyola to round out the conference schedule.
The Stags also play a non-conference game with Cal. State Northridge Saturday afternoon at the Arena (3:00 p.m., WVOF FM 88.5) as part of Bracket Buster tournament. The tournament creates a two year deal between the two teams, ensuring the Stags will travel to Northridge next season.
Although the nationwide Bracket Buster event, which features teams from mid-major conferences, is organized by ESPN, the game will not be televised.
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