Basket with :03 Remaining Proves Fatal to Gophers

Noble Erupts for 18 Points in Second Half, Finishes with 20

TOWSON, Md. — Goucher's Alex Noble (Clinton, Md./Surrattsville) had already scored 15 points in the second half when he was fouled while banking in a 12-foot jumper against Washington (Md.) tonight in the consolation semifinals of the 2011 Pride of Maryland Championship. When the freshman guard added the free throw to complete the conventional three-point play, his total for the game stood at 20 points and the Gophers and Shoremen were knotted up at 73-73 with :26 remaining in regulation.

Then it was Kevin Breslin's turn.

The senior forward, who had already tallied Washington's last 13 points,  got a baby hook shot to drop with :03 showing on the clock and those two points, which allowed Breslin to match Noble for scoring honors in the game, turned out to be the final margin of victory as the Shoremen defeated head coach Leonard Trevino's squad, 75-73.

Noble and Breslin had just nine points between them in the first half, which ended with the Gophers (0-2) trailing 37-33. Instead Tony Hawkins supplied the Shoremen (1-1) with 11 points and 10 different players got into the scoring act for Goucher during the opening 20 minutes.

The Shoremen were able to add to their lead at the outset of the second half and it got as large as 58-46 on a layup by Charlie McShane with 11:01 remaining, but then they hit a stretch where they could muster only four points over the next 8:13. That opened the door for the Gophers to get back in the game and when Noble connected from 3-point territory with 5:28 left to play, Goucher's deficit was down to a single point.

After another defensive stop by the Gophers, Noble landed a mid-range jumper to put his team up 63-62. Following a turnover by the Shoremen, Noble picked up an assist on a layup by Marcus Cotton (Silver Spring, Md./Springbrook) that provided Goucher with a 65-62 advantage.

Over the next 3:36, the only points either team was able to score from the field were from a layup by Breslin that put his team back in the lead, 66-65, with 1:47 remaining. He did considerably more damage at the free-throw line, making nine straight attempts, including two with :32 showing on the clock that put the Shoremen in front 73-70.

For the game, Breslin was 14-of-17 at the charity stripe. Four of his teammates also scored in double figures: Sal Schittino wound up with 13 points, Hawkins and Chris Olsen added 11 apiece and Adam Naymick delivered 10 points off the bench.

The only double-digit scorer for Goucher other than Noble was Cotton, who had a team-high eight rebounds to go along with his 13 points.