University of Maine
Wagner
Valjarevic's Last Second OT Bucket Gives Maine Men's Hoops First Win In Home-Opener
12/2/2014 12:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
The game looked to be in jeopardy when three free throw makes by Marcus Burton gave the Seahawks a three-point advantage with 1:06 left in the game.
However freshman Aaron Calixte helped Maine claw back to within one with 33 seconds remaining, recording a layup in the paint to make it 81-80. The Black Bears relied on a missed free throw by Greg Senat to set themselves up with one last possession, down by one.
A missed jumper by Valjarevic glanced off a Wagner defender and gave the Black Bears the possession with one second left and Lawton fed Valjarevic for the game winning-jumper as the clock struck zero.
The Black Bears finished the game with three players over 15 points with Till Gloger leading the way. Gloger shot 9-of-13 for 21 points along with three rebounds and two assists to pace the offense. Shaun Lawton was next on the list, notching 18 points, shooting 5-of-7 from the field and 7-of-8 from the stripe as he also recorded two steals and six assists in the process. For his career Lawton now has 100 steals. And has gone 12 straight games with at least one theft.
The contest's hero, Valjarevic finished with 17 points as he shot 7-of-14 from the floor including three long-range buckets. The Renaissance man also chipped in eight rebounds, three assists and two steals in 32 minutes of play.
Wagner was led by Burton who registered 25 points to go along with five rebounds and two assists. Also in double-figures was Mike Aaman and Corey Henson who registered 15 and 10 respectively.
Both teams had an accurate day from the field as Maine shot 53.6 percent while Wagner was just over 50 percent with a 50.8 mark.
Wagner got the best of the rebounding game with 34 boards to Maine's 31, however Maine improved its turnover numbers limiting itself to 17 while Wagner notched 20.
For the second-consecutive game the Black Bears took a lead into halftime as Maine edged the Seahawks in scoring, 40-39. Gloger went off in the first frame notching 13 first-half points, shooting an impressive 5-of-8 from the field.
Coming out of the Break the Black Bears extended its lead to four with a Valjarevic jumper with 8:38 left to go to make it 59-55.
The Seahawks battled back to take the lead just minutes later as a trey by Henson at the 7:37 mark made it 61-59.
The two teams traded punches but Wagner took a lead into the final minute as Burton drained a pair of free throws to give them a 74-72 lead. On the next possession, Lawton drew a foul by Mike Aaman with 13 seconds remaining to put him at the line with the chance to tie. Lawton connected on both chances and the Black Bears defense held strong in the final 13 seconds to force the overtime period.
The Black Bears outscored Wagner with a slim 8-7 margin, notching the buzzer-beater to notch its first victory of the season.
Maine will get back at it on Saturday when the team travels to Hanover, N.H., to play Dartmouth. That game is scheduled to tip off at 3 p.m.
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