MIAMI GARDENS, Fla. – St. Thomas University's Men's Basketball team (4-5, 3-1 TSC) defeated Sun Conference opponent Keiser University (3-8, 1-4 TSC) in dramatic fashion with a last-second game-winning bucket in overtime, 64-61, on Thursday evening from the Fernandez Family Center.

The Bobcats came out the starting gate stumbling, early in the first half, as the team came away with zero offense through their first several possessions. STU was trailing KU 0-9, for the first eight minutes of the game, when the Justin Brown-show began. Brown, the St. Thomas leader in points on the season, started the comeback with a dunk to get STU on the board, then came a three-point bucket, lay-up basket and free throws; in just four minutes, Brown willed the Bobcats from down 0-9 to lead 14-13 as he capped off an incredible 14-4 run with another slam dunk.

St. Thomas battled throughout the quarter with Keiser for the remainder of the first half, as Brown brought the game back to even at 21-21 with two more free throws with a minute remaining. In the final minute, Phillip Saunders nailed two consecutive three-point attempts, including one at the buzzer to send STU to the locker room leading 27-23.

Keiser responded to the STU buzzer-beating three to end the half, with a 12-0 run to open the second half to reclaim the lead at 35-27 over St. Thomas. Saunders hit a third consecutive three-point attempt to cut the deficit to five with twelve-minutes remaining, before adding another two-points to his total on a fast-break to bring the Bobcats within three points at 32-35.

The Seahawks kept St. Thomas at bay, building their lead back-up to five, before Antoine Joe hit a three-point attempt of his own to bring the game back to just one possession, at 39-41. The Sun Conference opponents traded buckets for much of the second half, and STU found themselves trailing by three, 50-53, in the final minute of the contest. Brown, proving to be the hero once again, led the Bobcats back into the game finishing the second half with the final seven-STU-points including a clutch three-point bucket to send the game into Overtime with ten seconds remaining.

KU opened the Overtime period with four quick points, to take their final lead of the game, before STU came back with an Aaron Dutcher lay-in and two more Brown free throws. Following a 30-second timeout by Keiser, the Seahawks missed a potential go-ahead jumper, which was rebounded by Saunders; Saunders took the ball up the floor, and nailed the game-winning three-point basket to send St. Thomas to their second consecutive Sun Conference win.

The Bobcats return to action on Saturday, December 8^th to take on crosstown Sun Conference opponent, Johnson & Wales University in Men's/Women's double-header action starting at 2 p.m. from JWU.

Notables

• Following the first 13-minutes of the game, Justin Brown was outscoring Keiser 14-13 by himself to lead the Bobcats.
• Brown currently has the season-high for Free Throw makes and attempts in the Sun Conference, as the junior shot 18-22 from the stripe.
• Saunders hit buzzer-beating shots to end the first half and seal the victory

Bobcat Leaders
Justin Brown: 32 points (season-high), 18-22 FT (Sun Conference season-high), eight rebounds
Philip Saunders: 15 points, 4-8 3PA, 5-11 FG
Kheron Millwood: 13 rebounds

-STU-