University of Richmond Athletics
University of Richmond
East Carolina
Geriot's Second Double-Double Leads Richmond To Second Win
11/14/2007 | Men's Basketball
Nov. 13, 2007
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| SpiderTV WRAP-UP 
GREENVILLE, N.C. - Freshman Justin Harper drilled a three-pointer to give Richmond the lead with 1:15 left overtime and the Spiders held off East Carolina, 67-65, Tuesday night at Williams Arena. Sophomore Dan Geriot recorded his second-straight double-double and finished with 22 points and 10 rebounds.
Geriot sank a pair of free throws with 1:06 left in regulation to force the extra period, capping a late rally by the Spiders, who trailed by as many as 10 in the second half.
Taylor Gagnon's two free throws gave ECU (1-1) the early lead in the extra session, but the Spiders (2-2) scored seven of the game's final nine points to seal their second win of the season. Richmond looks to make its two straight, hosting UMBC Saturday at 7 p.m.
After Harper's three gave Richmond its first lead since the 16:38 mark of the second half, freshman Kevin Anderson knocked down two free throws to extend the advantage to three with 15.2 left. Brock Young's basket with 9.7 left made it a one-point game, Ryan Butler hit one of two free throws and ECU's potential game-winning three at the buzzer was missed.
"The character that we showed and how hard we played - to be tough enough to get back in the game - is a very good sign for our guys," Richmond head coach Chris Mooney said.
Gagnon sank a free throw at the 10:49 mark to give the Pirates their largest at 50-40. But that's when Geriot took over. In a two-minute span, the sophomore scored eight-consecutive Richmond points to stem what was a 23-6 run by ECU to open the second half.
"Dan played great," Mooney said. "We're going to need him to do things like that and he's capable of doing things like that. The baskets he scored, the rebounds he was able to get, especially in the second half when we were struggling, were crucial for us."
Geriot's 22 came on eight-of-15 shooting from the field. He swiped eight defensive boards and dished out a team-leading five assists. Oumar Sylla was the other Spider in double-figures with 15.
Freshman Kevin Smith had seven, including a highlight-reel dunk in the first half. Anderson played 34 minutes and finished with four points, four assists, two steals and a block.
"Thank God for the freshmen," Geriot said. "They made big energy plays. Smitty and Harper hit big shots, and Anderson did a great job at point guard with (David Gonzalvez) fouling out. It just shows the future is bright. Wins are going to come, it might come hard this year, but we should get a lot of them."
Thanks to 10 first-half points from Sylla, Richmond jetted out to a quick 24-8 lead. Kevin Hovde scored all five of his points in a 60-second stretch that preceded a Sylla trey, Smith's dunk and a Geriot basket, giving the visitors' their largest lead at the 10:10 mark.
But the Pirates heated up from behind the arc, getting a pair of three's down the stretch from James Legan and another from Darrell Jenkins and trailed just 34-27 at the break.
Legan finished with 10 for ECU and Gabe Blair scored 19 with 12 boards.
