The men's basketball team suffered a disappointing loss last night at the Pizzitola Center, falling to the Holy Cross Crusaders in overtime, 85-79.
Bruno and the Crusaders were neck-and-neck throughout the entire game. The two teams went into halftime tied, 37-37, after a four-point play by Peter Sullivan '11 with four seconds remaining.
Toward the end of the second half, Brown gained control of the game. Strong inside play from Matt Mullery '10 and Andrew McCarthy '13 helped Brown gain the lead, and Matt Sullivan's '13 lay-up gave the Bears a commanding 59-49 lead with 7:30 remaining. A jumper from Peter Sullivan gave Brown an eight-point lead, 67-59, with under three minutes left in the game.
After that, sloppy ball handling from the Bears (4-5) gave Holy Cross a chance to get back in the game, when the Bears turned the ball over on four straight possessions. Suddenly, the Crusaders were only down by two, 67-65, after a jumper by guard Mike Cavataio.
The Crusaders stormed all the way back with 27 seconds remaining when guard Devin Brown laid the ball in after a strong drive. Brown still had a chance to come away with the victory in regulation. But Adrian Williams' '11 baseline jumper rimmed out, causing the Bruno supporters to groan in frustration. Cavataio had a chance to win it for the Crusaders, but he missed his open jumper as time expired.
The Bears suffered from poor ball control again in overtime, turning the ball over on the very first possession. A clutch three-pointer by Sullivan from the top of the arc gave the Bears a short-lived lead, 70-69. Holy Cross then rattled off nine straight points to grab a 78-70 advantage, led by seven points from Andrew Beinert.
A three-pointer by Williams cut the Bears' deficit to five points, 80-75. After making its free throws in the final minutes, the Holy Cross squad left the Pizzitola victorious.
Sullivan led all scorers with 28 points and Mullery added 21. Guards Cavataio and Beinert led the Crusaders (2-6), finishing with 21 and 15 points, respectively.
The Bears go on the road for their next two games, facing Minnesota on Saturday and cross-town rival PC on Monday.