Baltimore, Md. UMBC graduate student guard
DJ Armstrong Jr. hit a step back trey with one second remaining to lift UMBC men's basketball to a thrilling 81-79 road victory against the Morgan State Bears at Hill Field House on Tuesday night.
Armstrong finished with 17 points and was 4-for-6 from downtown. Junior forward
Daylon Dickerson recorded his first career "double-double" with 18 points and 10 rebounds. Junior guard
Ace Valentine added 12 points and a season-high seven assists. Freshman forward
Riley Jacobs and senior guard
Devin Ceaser (3-for-6 3pt-range) contributed nine points apiece.
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UMBC was trailing 77-71 with just 1:28 left on the clock, despite having led by as many as 15 points during the first half. However, the Retrievers maintained their composure and executed crucial plays in the final moments.
Valentine calmly sank two free throws, narrowing the deficit to 77-73 with 1:06 remaining. Junior guard
Jah'Likai King then made a key steal with 38 seconds left, which allowed Valentine to hit a long-range three-pointer from the left wing, bringing the Retrievers within 77-76 with just 24 seconds on the clock.
After a timeout called by UMBC, graduate student
Paul Greene stole the inbounds pass under Morgan's basket and scored a layup, giving the Retrievers a 78-77 lead with 17 seconds remaining.
The Bears called a timeout and managed to have Walter Peggs Jr. score on a second-chance layup with just seven seconds left, putting them ahead by one point. Without any timeouts remaining, UMBC got the ball to Armstrong Jr., who skillfully crossed up his defender and hit a step-back three-pointer from the right wing with only one second left, giving the Retrievers the lead.
Morgan State was unable to get off a last chance shot as the buzzer sounded.
UMBC started strong, hitting 10 of their first 11 field goal attempts and quickly taking a 26-11 lead with 10:41 left in the first half. They maintained a 15-point advantage at 40-25 after a three-pointer by Valentine with 4:40 remaining before halftime, ultimately finishing the half with a 45-34 lead.
In the second half, UMBC held a 52-41 lead with 17:01 to go, but the Bears responded with a 16-2 run, taking a 57-54 lead at the 13:34 mark. The game continued to see-saw back and forth until the exciting conclusion.
UMBC improves to 2-1 while the Bears fell to 1-2.
The Retrievers host Wagner on Sunday afternoon.
