March 8, 2008

JACKSON – Trailing from the opening tip until the waning seconds to a hungry UMHB squad, Chad Songy hit a fall-away 3-pointer from the far left wing with 2.3 seconds left in regulation to send regional-host Millsaps to a 57-56 come-from-behind win over the Cru and propel the Majors into the Sweet Sixteen for the third time in school history.

Millsaps (27-3) shot a season-low 28 percent from the floor, including a dreary 21 percent in the first half, but made up for it on the defensive end by forcing UMHB into 23 turnovers that overshadowed 51 percent shooting for the game.

A night after picking up its first NCAA Tournament win in school history in a 65-62 defeat of Fontbonne University, Mary Hardin-Baylor (26-4) opened the game emphatically with a 5-0 run and netted 16 of the first 22 points in the period for an early 10-point lead.

Millsaps missed 18 of its first 20 shots overall and couldn't find the bottom of the net in the opening period, facing their largest deficit of the game at 11 points, 24-13, after consecutive 3s from the Cru's Jason Wagner at the 6:54 mark.

The Majors fought back with an 8-2 spurt to cut the gap to 26-21 off a layup and free throw from Chris Sanders minutes later before a thunderous dunk from Tilmon Gaddy on a breakaway allowed UMHB to enter the half with a 33-26 advantage.

The Cru broke a scoreless, 3:11 drought for both teams to open the second period, using a Ryan Burgart layup off a David Ray assist for a 9-point cushion, while Millsaps continued its struggles from the floor and hit only 1-of-8 attempts in the opening 5:20 of the half.

Behind a rowdy group of Cru fans, UMHB held off any kind of a Millsaps run and wouldn't allow the Majors to get within four points when the pressure turned up, using a pair of big dunks and key buckets in the paint to head down the final 5:20 with a 51-44 lead.

A key contributer from beyond the arc all season and owner of a pair of game-winning shots, senior guard Lorenzo "Big Shot" Bailey took his teammates on his back and scored 14 of the Majors' final 20 points, including a 3-pointer with 3:19 left that cut the UMHB lead to just one at 53-52 and gave Millsaps new life.

After a free throw from Matt Caskey with 58 seconds left gave the Cru a 54-52 lead, Bailey followed with a jumper on the other end to tie the game at 54-54 and set up one of the most memorable finishes of this year's NCAA Tournament.

UMHB's Neiman Ford pump-faked and hit a jumper from just beyond the free throw line with 14.6 seconds left to silence the Millsaps crowd and give the visitors a 56-54 lead, forcing head coach Tim Wise to call his final timeout.

With the clock winding down under 5 seconds, Songy caught a deflected ball from a Cru defender deep on the left wing and heaved up a shot over the outstretched arm of Ford that found nothing but the bottom of the net with 2.3 seconds left (watch it here).

UMHB had one last chance but couldn't get off a shot, turning the ball over the length of the court after an unsuccesful throw-in that allowed Millsaps to run out the clock.

Millsaps will continue its quest for a first-ever national championship next weekend, traveling to play St. Mary's (Md.) at Washington University in St. Louis, Mo. Sectional brackets will be released Sunday night. To see an updated bracket click the attached link.

2008 Millsaps Regional All-Tournament Team:
Millsaps: Edrick Montgomery (21.5 ppg, 7.5 rpg), Lorenzo Bailey (15.0 ppg, 3.5 apg)
Fontbonne University: Justin Storandt (15 points, 13 rebounds)
Maryville College: Christopher Orr (14 points, 8 rebounds)
Mary Hardin-Baylor: David Ray (14.5 ppg, 6.5 rpg)