Scots Rally in Final Minute to Top St. John Fisher, 81-80

DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. – Junior Keonn Scott drained a go-ahead pull-up three-pointer from straight on with 14.9 seconds remaining and classmate Dontae Williams swatted aside the first of Saint John Fisher College's two tries at the game-winner, as The College of Wooster men's basketball team rallied back for a thrilling 81-80 win on day one of the Mauro Panaggio Tournament.

Scott's contributions were instrumental in the win, with all 20 of the sociology major's points coming after halftime. Prior to the go-ahead triple, Scott was dialed in, as his three-pointer from the wing pulled Wooster (6-1) within 79-78 with 24.5 second remaining.

In between Scott's trifectas, St. John Fisher's (4-4) Matt Asenjo missed the first of his two free throws with 24.5 seconds remaining, and that left the door open. Asenjo ultimately had the final chance for redemption at the buzzer, but his three-pointer from the corner hit off the back of the rim. Williams was in prime position to corral the rebound and prevent any possible chance of a tip-in.

With eight seconds remaining, St. John Fisher's Sean Williams drove to the rim, and appeared to be in position to sneak in a go-ahead layup. Dontae Williams had other intentions and swatted down the attempt prior to securing his 10th of a game-high 11 rebounds.

Wooster senior Danyon Hempy knocked down his signature elevated catch-and-release shot on an inbounds pass from Scott that pulled the Black and Gold with 78-75 with 33.3 seconds left. Hempy assisted on the first of Scott's closing three-pointers.

Brendan Trapper's bucket in the paint put St. John Fisher up 76-71 with 1:17 remaining, and it marked the final two points of the Cardinals' 13-3 run. Wooster's highlight during St. John Fisher's run came with 3:43 to go. That's when Hempy logged his fourth steal of the afternoon, and Scott capped the fast-break with a lay-in.

While there was plenty of excitement at the finish, Wooster's 14-0 first-half run was of significance in the final outcome. Wooster's bench provided the spark at the onset with sophomore Brandon Styers knocking down a three-pointer, and sophomore Drew Bishop did likewise not long after. Bishop's lay-in off of senior Trenton Tipton's assist put Wooster up 25-21 with 8:11 remaining, and Williams stuck with a play before adding two tallies to the points ledger with a stick-back with 7:24 to go before halftime.

Williams took charge on the glass again later in the run with an offensive rebound, and his layup with 6:06 left in the opening stanza bumped Wooster's lead out to 31-21.

Hempy's 22 points marked the team high. The psychology major turned in one of his best all-around efforts, evidenced by co-career-highs in rebounds (9) and steals (4). The senior also had six assists and two blocks on his Sunday afternoon stat line.

Scott lit up the scoreboard from range, with the junior finishing 6-for-9 from beyond the arc. Williams turned in his second straight double-double with 19 points and 11 rebounds, six of which came on the offensive end.

Wooster shot 47.6 percent (30-of-63) for the game, finished with a one-rebound edge (32-21), and tallied 11 steals.

Sammy Robinson's 26 points led all scorers. The Cardinals' guard was 8-of-16 from the floor and made all seven attempts at the charity stripe.

The Cardinals connected on 52.8 percent of their field goals (28-of-53) and were 18-of-22 at the line. St. John Fisher finished with two more turnovers than Wooster.

Next, Wooster plays The College at Brockport, State University of New York (6-1) in the championship game at 2 p.m. on Monday.