PHILADELPHIA (02/23/02) - Arguably the best senior class in Saint Joseph's storied history was honored during a pre-game ceremony as the quintet of
Na'im Crenshaw,
Marvin O'Connor,
Bill Phillips,
Damian Reid were to play in their final game at Alumni Memorial Fieldhouse. Winners of 13 straight A-10 games at the Fieldhouse, there was no reason to believe that visiting Dayton, despite its lofty record (now 17-8. 9-5) was going to be any match given the circumstances.
But then again, as has been the case throughout this wild and crazy 2001-02 Hawk season, strange things happen.
On this day, the strange thing would be the absence of sophomore point guard
Jameer Nelson. The Hawk floor leader, who had not missed a start in his first 58 games of his career, attended his grandmother's funeral in Chester, Pa. Being that it was the first funeral that he had ever attended, Hawk coach Phil Martelli did not know if he would be able to get to the game, let alone play. At 1:20 p.m., assistant Monte' Ross, who was at the funeral, called press row tosend word that Nelson was not able to play.
"To me, it is always family first," stated Martelli, at the postgame media conference. "Your family is the most important thing and you build it from there."
So, with sophomore
Tyrone Barley at the helm, the Hawk seniors took the floor for their final home game - and exploded. SJU jumped out to a 21-7 lead over Dayton, hitting nine of their first 11 shots from the floor.
"We just did a really good job of making sure we got layups, and we spead the ball around," stated Martelli on the team's fast start. "and today we guarded."
Marvin O'Connor and Na'im Crenshaw stepped up their games offensively, each tallying 21 to lead the team. In the early burst, the duo tallied 17 of the 21 points with O'Connor (9 points) hitting his first four shots and Crenshaw (8 points) dishing two assists.
"For all the knocks and the slings that this team has taken, we are 11-3 and in first place in the East, and we are able to control what happens to us."
Dayton ran off eight straight to cut it to six points, 21-15, as Brooks Hall hit two three pointers, but instead of panicing, SJU responded with six straight points to build the margin to 12 again. The Hawk lead would balloon to 15, 35-20, on an O'Connor "three" with 6:10 to play in the half, before the Flyers would close it to 40-29 at intermission.
Fueled possibly by hearing that Richmond had been upset by George Washington earlier in the day, Dayton stormed out of the lockerroom and quickly cut the Hawk lead to three points, 43-40, in the first five minutes. SJU countered with seven straight to make it 50-40, but the Flyers were not to be stymied, running off the next 10 points to tie the game at 50-50, with 10:06 to play.
Yuanta Holland, who came off the bench for 14 points, scored seven in that run, capping it with a steal and fastbreak dunk. The other "three" came from Ramond Marshall, who led UD with 21 points and four assists.
Dayton would tie SJU two other times, but never lead. As the Hawk faithful sat on the edge of their seats, SJU would pull out its first one-possession game of the season.
With 10 seconds left, Bill Phillips stepped to the line with the Hawks holding a one-point lead, 69-68. Phillips, who led SJU with 11 rebounds, hit the first, but not the second free throw. Marshall then launched a three-pointer that bounced out. O'Connor went up for the rebound and swatted it out of bounds, thinking that time would expire.
That was not the case as 1.5 seconds remained. Hall's inbounds pass clanged off the top of the backboard, and into the hands of Keith Walekowski, who launched a desperation 3-pointer as time expired. That missed, sending the SJU seniors off with a hard-fought win.
Reid, the most prolific shooter in SJU history, posted his fourth double-double of the year, tallying 11 points and 10 rebounds on the day.
"These three games are going to decide what is going to happen in the A-10," stated O'Connor on the stretch run that finishes with St. Bonaventure and Temple. "We have to buckle down and get these games."
SJU, now 17-9, 11-3, next travels to the Bonnies for a Thursday game (8:00 p.m./CSN/WPEN 950 AM)
