Box Score

Stetson Stet 11-13,7-9 ASUN

Bellarmine BU 13-7,10-3 ASUN

Stetson Stet

11-13,7-9 ASUN

Final

Mar. 04, 2021

Bellarmine BU

13-7,10-3 ASUN

Score By Periods
Team	1	2	F
Stetson Stet	43	30	73
Bellarmine BU	39	31	70

Game Recap: Men's Basketball | March 04, 2021 | Athletic Communications

Hatters Upset Bellarmine to Reach ASUN Semifinals

JACKSONVILLE, Fla.—Mahamadou Diawara's layup with 29 seconds remaining proved to be the game-winning basket as the No. 7 seed Stetson Hatters knocked off No. 2 seed Bellarmine, 73-70, in the ASUN Tournament quarterfinals, Thursday at UNF Arena.

Diawara, who finished with 17 points and a game-high 11 rebounds, rebounded a missed layup by Stephan Swenson and just nudged the ball over the rim and into the basket to give Stetson a 71-70 lead.

After snagging a rebound on the other end as the Knights missed a potential go-ahead shot, Diawara missed on an opportunity to give Stetson a larger lead, missing two free throws with 3.2 seconds to play.

But Bellarmine turned it over on a full-court heave following the missed free throws, and Christiaan Jones provided the final margin with a pair of free throws with :0.3 left, as Stetson advanced to the semifinals for the second straight year.

The Hatters (11-13) next face top seed Liberty, 2 p.m., Friday, in the semifinals. The Hatters and Flames split two games in January, and the two met in the semifinals last season in Lynchburg, Va.

On Thursday, the Hatters stormed out the gates against the Knights, making 12 of their first 16 shots and bolting to a 43-31 lead with 1:20 left before halftime. Bellarmine closed the half on an 8-0 run to cut Stetson's lead to 43-39.

The halftime lead marked the third time in three meetings Stetson led the Knights at the break, and the previous two games ended in defeat for the Hatters. This time was different.

Bellarmine tried to follow the script from past games, opening the second half with a 24-15 run and taking a 63-58 lead after a three-point play by Pedro Bradshaw with 9:16 left. But this time, Stetson didn't wilt.

Jones followed Bradshaw's efforts with a 3-pointer and Diawara made one free throw as the Hatters closed to within 63-62 with 7:31 to go.

Three more free throws – one by Rob Perry and two more from Diawara – gave Stetson a 65-63 edge with 6:05 to go.

Bellarmine responded with a 3-pointer for a 66-65 lead, beginning a stretch of five lead changes in just over 5 minutes, setting up Diawara's heroics.

Bellarmine's CJ Fleming gave the Knights a 70-69 lead on a 3-pointer with 42 seconds to play. After a Bellarmine timeout, Swenson drove the left side of the lane and missed a layup, but Diawara was there to clean up the mess and give Stetson the lead for good.

Diawara finished 6 of 8 from the field and 5 of 9 from the free throw line in just 21 minutes. Jones scored a game-high 19 points, adding 9 boards.

Dylan Penn led Bellarmine with 19 points.

Quoting Head Coach Donnie Jones
"We can talk about the 'next play' mentality, but sometimes with a young team when we make mistakes it takes the air out of us. If somebody made a big shot or made a big play or we turned it over, which we did, again, down the stretch we had some huge possessions that we didn't capitalize on. But the guys continued to battle and play and pound away and it bounced our way at the end."

Game Notes

Rob Perry finished 6 assists, the 9^th time in his career he's had 5 or more in a game
The double-double by Mahamadou Diawara was his 4^th this season and 8^th of his career
Chase Johnston made a pair of 3-pointers, giving him 74 for the season. He needs 3 more to break Luke Doyle's all-time single-season record of 76 (2016-17)
Christiaan Jones enjoyed his 58^th career double figure scoring effort
Stetson's plus-17 (37-20) rebounding margin was its largest this season against any opponent

About Stetson University Athletics: Stetson University's Athletics Program has a vision of developing a culture of champions athletically, academically and within the community. This vision is accomplished through a mission of recruiting and developing student-athletes, coaches and staff, creating a culture of champions, within and outside of competition. The department operates with five core values: Championship Culture, Integrity, Excellence, Pride/Tradition and Leadership. To learn more about the Vision, Mission and Core Values for Stetson Athletics, visit GoHatters.com and click on Mission Statement under the Inside Athletics tab.

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