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DAYTON, Ohio – St. Francis has played a season’s worth of close games in just the past two weeks. Three consecutive overtime wins, followed by three straight victories by three points apiece, set the Red Flash up with their first appearance in the NCAA Tournament since 1991.
It was only fitting that St. Francis had yet another tightly contested battle Tuesday night. Unfortunately, the Red Flash came up on the wrong end.
Amarr Knox’s layup with one second to go capped off a dramatic final two minutes and gave Alabama State a 70-68 triumph over St. Francis in a First Four matchup at the University of Dayton Arena.
“What a basketball game,” St. Francis coach Rob Krimmel said. “It was two teams that left it all out on the court. There’s a fine line between winning and losing, but the emotional gap is huge. We did everything we could. Unfortunately, today we were two points short.”
Alabama State took its first lead since the game’s opening minutes at 66-62 on a bucket by Knox followed by a steal and dunk from Micah Octave with 1:41 to go. Back-to-back 3-pointers from Juan Cranford Jr. and Chris Moncrief tied the game at 68-all with 40 seconds remaining.
After a Hornets missed shot and a Red Flash turnover, Alabama State had an inbound from the opposite baseline. Micah Simpson launched a full-court heave, which was tipped by multiple players and fell into the hands of Knox, who put the ball in almost uncontested.
The Red Flash’s ensuing desperation heave was off the mark.
“That’s what it is, March Madness,” Alabama State coach Tony Madlock said. “I told the guys that we either had to get a bucket or we had to get a stop, and fortunately, we got a bucket. We always talk about finding a way. We found a way to get it done today.”
The victory sends the No. 16 seed Hornets (20-15) into Thursday’s first-round matchup against No. 1 Auburn inside the University of Kentucky’s Rupp Arena. St. Francis closed a 16-18 season.
“For 34 games, we left it all out on the court,” Krimmel said. “I know they’re disappointed, but they’re champions, and nothing can take that away from them. What these guys have done for St. Francis basketball, what these guys have done for our community, they don’t know, nor should they, but they left their mark.”
The Red Flash led by as many as nine points, at 39-30 late in the first half. Two straight Hornets buckets cut the deficit to five points at the break.
Tuesday marked the fifth time this season that St. Francis lost after leading at halftime.
St. Francis committed 15 turnovers, including nine in the first half despite still being in front.
“It’s crazy what happened,” Cranford said. “I thought we had possession on the play (before the inbound). We just turned the ball over too many times. They got a lot of extra chances and possessions and that ended up being the difference.”
In turn, Alabama State compiled 26 points off the Red Flash miscues.
The Hornets recorded nine steals and 12 offensive rebounds. As a result, Alabama State was awarded many extra offensive opportunities. The Hornets outshot St. Francis 70-48.
“We were trying to do that for 40 minutes,” Madlock said of the pressure defense. “We knew they (St. Francis) were a good team and they can hurt you if they heat up and knock down shots. We did a good job of staying in their face and keeping them off-balance. I’m proud of the guys.”
Production off the bench also proved to be a key factor in the contest, with the Hornets’ reserves tallying a 25-7 scoring advantage.
Cranford led all scorers with 18 points and pulled down eight rebounds. Valentino Pinedo scored 17 and Riley Parker added 12.
With no seniors in the current rotation, the Red Flash will look to build off their most successful campaign in 34 years. St. Francis claimed its second Northeast Conference championship and made its second NCAA Tournament appearance.
“I wouldn’t have wanted to do this with any other team,” said Cranford, who was NEC rookie of the year and tournament MVP. “I love this group. This is one of the best groups I’ve ever been with. It was a good journey. We learned a lot of lessons. I’m very grateful for this year.”
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It was only fitting that St. Francis had yet another tightly contested battle Tuesday night. Unfortunately, the Red Flash came up on the wrong end.
Amarr Knox’s layup with one second to go capped off a dramatic final two minutes and gave Alabama State a 70-68 triumph over St. Francis in a First Four matchup at the University of Dayton Arena.
“What a basketball game,” St. Francis coach Rob Krimmel said. “It was two teams that left it all out on the court. There’s a fine line between winning and losing, but the emotional gap is huge. We did everything we could. Unfortunately, today we were two points short.”
Alabama State took its first lead since the game’s opening minutes at 66-62 on a bucket by Knox followed by a steal and dunk from Micah Octave with 1:41 to go. Back-to-back 3-pointers from Juan Cranford Jr. and Chris Moncrief tied the game at 68-all with 40 seconds remaining.
After a Hornets missed shot and a Red Flash turnover, Alabama State had an inbound from the opposite baseline. Micah Simpson launched a full-court heave, which was tipped by multiple players and fell into the hands of Knox, who put the ball in almost uncontested.
The Red Flash’s ensuing desperation heave was off the mark.
“That’s what it is, March Madness,” Alabama State coach Tony Madlock said. “I told the guys that we either had to get a bucket or we had to get a stop, and fortunately, we got a bucket. We always talk about finding a way. We found a way to get it done today.”
The victory sends the No. 16 seed Hornets (20-15) into Thursday’s first-round matchup against No. 1 Auburn inside the University of Kentucky’s Rupp Arena. St. Francis closed a 16-18 season.
“For 34 games, we left it all out on the court,” Krimmel said. “I know they’re disappointed, but they’re champions, and nothing can take that away from them. What these guys have done for St. Francis basketball, what these guys have done for our community, they don’t know, nor should they, but they left their mark.”
The Red Flash led by as many as nine points, at 39-30 late in the first half. Two straight Hornets buckets cut the deficit to five points at the break.
Tuesday marked the fifth time this season that St. Francis lost after leading at halftime.
St. Francis committed 15 turnovers, including nine in the first half despite still being in front.
“It’s crazy what happened,” Cranford said. “I thought we had possession on the play (before the inbound). We just turned the ball over too many times. They got a lot of extra chances and possessions and that ended up being the difference.”
In turn, Alabama State compiled 26 points off the Red Flash miscues.
The Hornets recorded nine steals and 12 offensive rebounds. As a result, Alabama State was awarded many extra offensive opportunities. The Hornets outshot St. Francis 70-48.
“We were trying to do that for 40 minutes,” Madlock said of the pressure defense. “We knew they (St. Francis) were a good team and they can hurt you if they heat up and knock down shots. We did a good job of staying in their face and keeping them off-balance. I’m proud of the guys.”
Production off the bench also proved to be a key factor in the contest, with the Hornets’ reserves tallying a 25-7 scoring advantage.
Cranford led all scorers with 18 points and pulled down eight rebounds. Valentino Pinedo scored 17 and Riley Parker added 12.
With no seniors in the current rotation, the Red Flash will look to build off their most successful campaign in 34 years. St. Francis claimed its second Northeast Conference championship and made its second NCAA Tournament appearance.
“I wouldn’t have wanted to do this with any other team,” said Cranford, who was NEC rookie of the year and tournament MVP. “I love this group. This is one of the best groups I’ve ever been with. It was a good journey. We learned a lot of lessons. I’m very grateful for this year.”
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