BALTIMORE, MD — Notre Dame of Maryland held on for a dramatic 76–75 victory over St. Mary's (MD) on Tuesday evening at Gator Court, surviving a frenetic final stretch to secure the one-point United East win. The game had an extra emotional touch as head coach TJ Jordan is an alumni of St. Mary's College of Maryland and played for current Seahawks head coach Chris Harney.
The Gators carried a 35–29 lead into halftime and maintained a narrow advantage throughout much of the second half in a game that featured six lead changes and nine ties. Notre Dame leaned on its interior presence and transition offense to counter St. Mary's perimeter shooting, keeping the contest within a one- or two-possession margin for most of the final 10 minutes.
With just over five minutes remaining, the Gators were ahead 66-65 after a couple of Marlon Lewis free throws. The Seahawks went on a 9-0 run to take an eight point lead with three minutes to play. Jahbreco Dacosta was able to pull down an offensive rebound and scored the put back layup to stop the St. Mary's momentum. Jackson Pugh set up Dacosta for another layup on the next possession, then Pugh stole the ball away on the full court press as Lewis was fouled on the fast break attempt.
Lewis made a free throw, then came up with another steal and layup to make it a two point game with a minute left. Another St. Mary's turnover saw Lewis back to the free throw line where he made one of two to make it a one point deficit. A missed Seahawk three-pointer gave the Gators the ball back for the last shot. Lewis got the ball and drove to the hoop where he was fouled with one second left on the clock. With a raucous crowd at his back, Lewis drained both free throws to give the Gators the leave as a desperation heave at the buzzer fell short, sealing the victory for the Gators.
Lewis finished with a game-high 21 points and eight rebounds along with two blocks and two steals. Anthony Wright added 16 points, while Carlos Green scored 14 off the bench. Jahbreco Dacosta chipped in 13 points and eight boards to round out a balanced Notre Dame effort.
With the win, Notre Dame of Maryland improves to 15–8 overall and 9–2 in United East play as there is now a five way tie at the top of the conference standings with just two regular season games to play. The Gators will have their home regular season finale on Saturday February 7 as they celebrate senior night against Penn State Berks. The Nittany Lions are 6-15 overall and are sixth in the conference at 5-5. Notre Dame won the only meeting between the two teams last year in an 88-73 Gators win.
