Niagara 69
Iona 66
BUFFALO – For almost a minute after he’d lost the ball – and with it any chance for a miraculous come-from-behind upset of top-seeded Niagara – Iona junior Steve Burtt was motionless, bent over with his hands on his knees and his head bowed, staring at the spot on the floor where the Gaels’ title dream died.
In the final three minutes they had shaved a nine-point deficit to one, and Ricky Soliver’s last-minute steal gave them a chance to steal the game. But when Juan Mendez’ close-out forced Burtt to lose the ball to David Brooks with four seconds left, Niagara escaped with a 69-66 MAAC semifinal win.
A half-hour later, Burtt – who’d needed just 15 shots for a game-high 28 points – leaned up against the wall at HSBC Arena, a jacket on his back and a cap pulled over his slightly reddened eyes. When asked what he’d felt as he stared down at the court, he said simply, “Disbelief.”
“We’ve come so far and I’m so proud of my team. It was just a shame for it to be over for the seniors, Charles [Henson], Greg [Jenkins]. I felt like I let those guys down,” Burtt said. “Those guys put so much on my back and I’ve taken that on that responsibility and I just felt like I failed those guys.”
Actually, he’d carried them. His 85 points in only three games were the sixth-most in MAAC tourney history, and broke his father Steve Sr.’s school mark.
Sixth-seeded Iona (15-16) had rebounded from a slow start this season to get red-hot down the stretch. It was no coincidence that Burtt averaged 15.8 ppg when the Gaels opened just 5-11, but 22.9 as they closed 10-5.
Yesterday they faced not just top-seeded Niagara (19-9), but a team that got a double-bye straight into the semis, a team that had the league’s Player of the Year in Mendez, and was playing just 20 miles from home. It still came down to the wire.
Iona – taking advantage of a rusty club that hadn’t played in eight days – jumped to an 11-2 lead. They led 56-54 on Burtt’s jumper before missing six straight to fall behind 65-56 on a Mendez dunk that capped an 11-0 run. It was 67-58 with less than three minutes left when they answered with a 7-0 spurt.
Iona got a layup from Burtt and a dunk from Jenkins, who had 19 points despite a bad back. Soliver hit two last-minute foul shots to cut it to 67-66, then stripped Mendez (18 points, 13 boards) with :27 left. Burtt tried to a high pick-and-roll, but lost the ball. David Brooks (23 points) pounced on it and got fouled.
Niagara goes on to tonight’s 9 p.m. final vs. Rider, which defeated Fairfield 76-74, while the Gaels go home.
