Spiders erase 21-point deficit before falling in OT at Charleston

Monday, November 14

Charleston, SC

7:00 PM

University of Richmond

2-1,0-0Atlantic 10

Charleston

2-1,0-0CAA

OT 1

Richmond

Col. of Charleston

Spiders erase 21-point deficit before falling in OT at Charleston

11/14/2022 | Men's Basketball

Box Score

CHARLESTON, S.C. – For 24 minutes Monday night, almost nothing went right for the Richmond men's basketball team at Charleston's TD Arena. The Spiders trailed Charleston 56-35 early in the second half as the Cougars, backed by a rowdy home crowd, seemed primed for a runaway win.

But Richmond refused to go quietly. Shot started to fall for the Spiders, allowing UR to utilize a full-court press to force turnovers and speed up the Charleston offense. An 11-0 Spiders run quickly followed, cutting Richmond's deficit from 18 with 11:59 to play in regulation to 64-57 with 9:44 left.

The Spiders continued to push, pulling within one possession on a three-pointer from Jason Roche with 6:12 to go. With 2:40 remaining, Richmond took its first lead of the game on a three-pointer by Isaiah Bigelow to make the score 77-76, sending the Spiders bench into hysterics and quieting the crowd.

Back-to-back field goals from Tyler Burton gave the Spiders an 81-78 advantage in the final minute of regulation, but the Spiders fouled Charleston's Reyne Smith on a late three-point attempt and the Cougars guard made all three free throws to force overtime.

Again in the extra period, it seemed like the Spiders would secure one of the biggest comeback wins in program history. Burton scored UR's first six points of overtime, and Andre Gustavson's free throw with 2:44 to play gave Richmond an 88-83 advantage.

But Charleston answered with five straight points to tie the game at 88 before Burton hit a turnaround from the left block with 28 seconds remaining. Down to their final chance, Charleston's Jaylon Scott drove hard to the basket, made the layup and was fouled. His free throw put the Cougars back in front for good as Charleston hung on for the 92-90 win.

Burton finished with a career-high 38 points, the most by any Spider since January 19, 2013, when Darien Brothers scored 39 against Charlotte. "It was a good test," said Burton after the game. "Everyone in that huddle was talking. Everyone was communicating and yelling and very passionate about what was going on. We were all really bought in," said Burton of UR's comeback effort.

"I just told the guys very briefly how proud I was and how much you could see in that team tonight," said Spiders head coach Chris Mooney. "We have the guys who can do this when things aren't going well. Anyone can be a frontrunner and get out and go when things are going great. But when you're behind and it's tough -- it felt like they're making every shot, the roof was falling in. But when you know you've done that – we tied it pretty early, it wasn't like the last second – there's a certain amount of pride you can develop."

Burton made 13 of his 20 shots from the field, including 4-8 from three-point range, and was 8-8 from the foul line while adding six rebounds and four assists.

"Tyler was just tremendous," said Mooney. "The bench was incredible. The guys were incredible in the huddles. There was never any quit, which obviously isn't easy when you're down 21 on the road."

Matt Grace added 16 points for Richmond, matching his career high. Bigelow finished with 15 points and a team-high eight rebounds. Jason Nelson, who was named Atlantic 10 Rookie of the Week earlier Monday, added 10 points and four assists.

"We all could have made one more shot. We all could have made one more defensive play. We all could have got to help defense one step sooner. But you can say 'look what we were able to do because of this collective will and this togetherness and toughness.'"

Richmond will return to action Thursday at the Robins Center vs Wichita State. Tip-off is scheduled for 7 PM and the game will be broadcast on MASN and ESPN Plus.