EDINBURG, Texas – Seattle U men's basketball rallied from a 12-point first half deficit to lead 70-68 with just under a minute to play in regulation at UTRGV Thursday night. But the Vaqueros would tie the game to forcer overtime and Seattle U could not complete the comeback as Hasan Abdul-Hakim knocked down the game-winner for the home team in an 81-80 final at the UTRGV Fieldhouse.
Alex Schumacher had a game-high 25 points to go with six assists for the Redhawks. Kobe Williamson added 16 points and John Christofilis added 11 as Seattle U shot 50% from the field and went 19-of-26 from the charity stripe, but managed just 3-of-16 from three.
UTRGV had five players in double figures, paced by Ahren Freeman's 22. Abdul-Hakim had 15 including the go-ahead overtime bucket with one second remaining.
The Redhawks trailed by as many as a dozen points in the first half despite shooting better than 46% in the frame. A solid defensive stand late in the period helped them pull within two at the break, 37-35, after holding UTRGV to just six points over an eight minute span.
Seattle U took a 70-68 lead on a Williamson layup with 59 seconds remaining. But Freeman would answer on the other end to tie the score at 70. Both teams would have two more chances to win in regulation, but each missed a shot and committed a turnover, sending the game into overtime.
The Redhawks led 79-75 following a Paris Dawson three with 2:12 on the clock, but were outscored 6-1 from there.
At 10-6 overall and 3-2 in WAC play, Seattle U heads to Arlington for a Saturday matinee match-up with the UT Arlington Mustangs. Tip off from College Park Center is set for 2 p.m. Central Time.
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