HONOLULU (Nov. 14) – Senior forward
Sylas Williams had 17 points and nine rebounds and senior guard
Mack Keighran capped an epic Alaska Anchorage comeback Saturday, sinking the game-winning basket with 2.9 seconds remaining for a 65-64 victory over Hawaii Pacific at the Shark Tank.
The Seawolves (3-1) also got 16 points from
Walker Timme and 15 points from
Karim Elgizawy as they won despite leading for a grand total of 41 seconds.
The Sharks (3-3) were led by 12 points and 13 rebounds from Will Woodward, along with 13 points and seven assists from Adam Kilminster, but could not capitalize on a blazing start.
"That was a tough, gritty win against a quality HPU team," said UAA head coach
Cameron Turner. "We're still finding our identity defensively, but one thing we know about this group is that we play hard. I'm really proud of the resilience our guys showed tonight. Everyone contributed in some capacity and found a way to help us with the minutes they got. It took all of us to earn this one."
After falling behind 23-6 in a nightmarish opening five minutes, the Seawolves began the slow march back with five straight points from Keighran. Elgizawy was fouled beyond the arc and sank all three free throws to draw within single digits at 28-21, before HPU took a 39-31 lead into the halftime break.
Trailing 57-47 midway through the second half, UAA got a big lift from senior center
Lyman Simmons, who converted a putback to start a 6-0 run, and Williams swished a three-pointer to slice it to 60-58 with 4:26 remaining.
Woodward sank a potential back-breaking trey to give the Sharks a 64-60 advantage with 90 seconds left, but Timme answered with a top-of-the-arc three-pointer – his first as a Seawolf – that circumnavigated the rim before falling through.
After forcing a shot-clock violation, UAA got the ball to Keighran, who drove strong and banked home the winner while drawing a foul. Following a long timeout, the Aussie purposely missed the free throw to make the Sharks use more time, and Ike Sutton's desperation halfcourt heave caromed off the backboard.
Williams shot 8 of 14 from the field, while Elgizawy was 6 of 6 on free throws, along with four rebounds, five assists, no turnovers and a critical steal and layup in the final minutes.
Keighran notched 10 points to reach double figures for the fourth straight time, adding four assists.
UAA also got clutch bench contributions from Simmons (2 points, 4 rebounds),
Joseph Mayberry (5 points, 2 assists, no turnovers) and
Luke Johnston (2 offensive rebounds, 2 assists, one steal, no turnovers).
The Seawolves take a break in the schedule before facing Trevecca Nazarene on Nov. 27 in Fairbanks.
