Lanier Leads Devils to Upset Win over Tigers

Howard Lanier hit a three-point field goal with 3.8 seconds remaining, breaking a 66-all tie and leading the Devils to a 69-66 upset win over Holy Family University at the Tigers Campus Center this evening.

With the win, the Devils improve to 6-9 overall and 4-6 in Central Atlantic Collegiate conference games. USP has now won six of their last eight games overall and four of their last five conference games. Holy Family falls to 10-7 overall and 6-4 in the CACC.

Lanier (So., St. Augustine Prep/Sicklerville, NJ) finished the game with a career high 19 points. Howard was a perfect 7-for-7 from the field, including four ‘treys’ and 1-for-1 from the free throw line. The sophomore guard also dished out a team-high five assists.

Lanier’s bucket capped a 17-4 run by the Devils over the final 8:08 to erase a ten-point deficit and give the Devils their third straight victory.

Trailing 62-52, USP’s Keith Dundas (So., Pennsbury HS/Morrisville, PA) started the rally with a short baseline jumper. After a Tiger turnover, Lanier canned a ‘trey’ at the 6:51 mark to make the score 62-57. The Tigers turned the ball over again and Lanier pulled up and hit another 3-ball to pull the Devils within two, 62-60 with 6:21 left.

Andrew Presner put the Tigers back up by four, 64-60 and USP’s Eric Cangelosi (Jr., Camden Catholic HS/Haddon Heights, NJ) made 1 of 2 from the line to make the score 64-61 with 4:37 left. Presner then turned the ball over and Lanier, who got the steal on the play, raced down the court for a layup and was fouled on the play. Lanier made his only free throw of night and the score was tied at 64-64 at the 4:15 mark.

Neither team scored again until the 1:46 mark when Bill Kurtz’ (Jr., Shawnee HS/Shamong, NJ) jumper gave the Devils a 66-64 lead. Ryan Lancaster knotted things up again at 66-all with a basket and the clock showing just 57 ticks left. USP played patient offense and got two key offensive rebounds, allowing them to hold the ball for the final shot. As time was winding down, Lanier took a pass from Collin Harrington (Jr., Bishop Eustace HS/Sewell, NJ) and drained his final ‘three’ of the night with 3.8 seconds left to put the Devils up 69-66. The Tigers had one last chance and were fouled with just 2/10 of a second left. Shooting a 1-and-1, Ryan Haigh missed the shot and time expired.

USP had built a 14-point lead in the first half before the Tigers rallied to cut the deficit to eight at the break, 43-35. The Tigers took control in the second half, opening the period with an 18-2 run to take an eight-point lead, 53-45 with 14:27 left. USP scored seven straight points to pull back within one, 53-52 at the 11:39 mark but the Tigers countered with a 9-0 run to go up by 10, 62-52 before the Devils embarked on their final run of the night to pull out the victory.

Kurtz and Cangelosi joined Lanier in reaching double figures for the Devils. Kurtz scored 14 points and dished out five assists. Cangelosi came off the bench to score 13 points and had a team-high six rebounds.

Presner led the Tigers with 17 points while Lancaster chipped in 16. Dan Welch recorded a double-double for the Tigers with 11 points and 12 rebounds.

The Tigers out shot the Devils, making 53.8% of their shots from the field (28-52) compared to USP’s 41.7% (25-60). The Devils however were 9-18 (50%) from downtown and 10-15 (66.7%) from the charity stripe. Holy Family was just 5-16 from beyond the arc (31.3%) and 5-for-8 from the free throw line (62.5%). The Devils held a big advantage committing just eight turnovers to 19 for the Tigers, offsetting Holy Family’s 37-28 advantage on the boards.