Last-minute three-pointer not enough for Northeast men

NORFOLK, Neb. – A lively crowd inside the Cox Activities Center was treated to a second half show as the Northeast Community College men's basketball team fell Saturday, 72-71 in ICCAC play against Ellsworth Community College in Norfolk.

The Hawks (4-11, 0-5 ICCAC) had multiple performers fill up the stat sheet as Emaniel Alexandre (Nassau, Bahamas) led the way with 21 points, 12 rebounds and six steals. Saheed Sanusi (Nassau, Bahamas) added 15 points, while Collin Storr (Nassau, Bahamas) had a strong performance off the bench tallying 10 points, 10 rebounds and four blocks. The Hawks were active on the glass all game as they had a 40-34 rebounding advantage over the Panthers.

The matchup was highly contested in the first half, but the game down to a critical second half. Sanusi led the game in second half scoring with 10 points, and the team as a whole totaled six second-half steals.

The Hawks looked to be in trouble when the Panthers made a 3-pointer with 8:12 to play in the game, but that's when the game turned into a real track meet. Only 12 seconds later, Jaden Strachan (Nassau, Bahamas) returned the favor with a 3-pointer of his own, which was followed by a Panthers dunk a mere 15 seconds later. The teams continued to race up-and-down the floor as Sanusi buried a three-point shot 21 seconds later, stole the ball on the defensive end 15 seconds later, and made a layup to tie the game at 60 with 7:05 to play. In roughly 90 seconds, the teams combined for 13 points and continued to trade buckets as the game came to a close.

With 44 seconds to play the Panthers extended their lead to four by pulling ahead 70-66, but the Hawks weren't done yet. Chaz Cullum (Omaha, Neb.) drove the length of the court and laid the ball in to bring the Hawks back to within two with 39 seconds to play. The Panthers took a timeout with 23 seconds left, attempted a layup that was rejected by Storr, and took another timeout with 15 seconds remaining in the game.

The Hawks defense didn't waver when it mattered the most by forcing a shot clock violation on the Panthers with eight seconds to play. Hawks head coach Dan Anderson called a timeout, and huddled his team to draw up a perfect play.

Storr inbounded the ball to Sanusi who found Strachan on the wing to give the Hawks a 71-70 advantage, and no one inside of the Cox Activities Center remained in their seat.

The Panthers took yet another timeout and on the ensuing inbound play, Storr committed a foul, which put the Panthers on the free throw line for two shots. The Panthers hit both shots to come away with the victory.

The Hawks return home for a 7:30 p.m. tipoff on Tuesday at the Cox Activities Center to face off with Iowa Lakes Community College.

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