Cougars steal heartbreaker from Wesleyan in hoops action, 72-71

Rocky Mount, NC - It took just three seconds to send a frenzied Everett Gymnasium crowd into a silent state of disbelief.  With three ticks left on the clock, North Carolina Wesleyan’s Trey Drake ignited Bishop fans with a game-tying jumper that was sure to send Wednesday night’s USA South contest with Averett University into overtime.  As time expired, however, those same fans were silenced when a foul was called on a desperation three-pointer at the buzzer.  AU’s Jonathan Rumley calmly stepped to the line and knocked down his first attempt to give the Cougars a 72-71 come-from-behind win over the Bishops.

An Averett win looked to be out of the question early in the game as the Cougars missed their first 19 attempts from the floor.  Wesleyan’s tenacious defense caused several AU turnovers and missed shots, while offensively, the Bishops were scoring at will. 

Led by the hot shooting of sophomore Jarmel Arrington, Wesleyan raced out to a 27-3 lead at the 10:45 mark.  Arrington scored 15 points in the half, knocking down 3-of-5 three-point attempts.

The Cougars, however, managed to get on track midway through the period. Cory McDaniel converted AU’s first field goal with 10:04 remaining, and Averett went on to out-score Wesleyan 21-8 over the next 10 minutes of play.  NCWC took a 35-24 lead into intermission.

The second half saw the Bishops up their lead to 17 points at 44-27 on a lay-up by Buddy Williams with 16:26 left in regulation.  Wesleyan maintained a double-digit lead for most of the period and led by 11 at 64-53 at the 6:06 mark.  Two McDaniel free throws pulled AU to within nine, and the ensuing 15-4 run by the Cougars tied the game at 68-68 with 1:11 remaining.

Arrington knocked down 1-of-2 free throws with 43 ticks left to put the Bishops back on top 69-68, but Rumley answered with a lay-up less than 20 seconds later to give the Cougars their first lead of the contest.  A Rumley free throw with nine seconds left set the stage for Drake’s game-tying 12-footer.

Wesleyan’s excitement was stifled when Rumley took the in-bounds pass, took a few dribbles past halfcourt, and after a pair of head fakes, launched a desperation three from the right side.  Shortly thereafter, a wave of disbelief rushed through the crowd as the official blew his whistle to call a foul.  Rumley’s first free throw attempt with no time on the clock was good, completing the Cougars’ unlikely comeback and victory.

Rumley finished with a team-high 19 points and 10 rebounds.  Damien Brown and McDaniel chipped in 16 and 14 points, respectively.  The Cougars, who shot 50 percent from the floor in the second half, knocked down 21 free throws to the Bishops’ 12.

Arrington led the Bishops with a game-high 23 points and team-high eight boards.  Senior Jarvis Cobb tallied 16 points, while Lenny Hall had 10 points and four assists. 

Wesleyan returns to action on Sunday when Ferrum College visits Everett Gymnasium.  Tip-off is slated for 4:00 p.m.

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