Box Score ST. THOMAS, U.S.V.I. – Jae Crowder broke a 57-all tie with a fast-break slam with 1:13 remaining, and Norfolk State's Kyle O'Quinn missed a potential winning 3-pointer with four seconds remaining as Marquette escaped with a 59-57 win over a game Spartan squad in the Paradise Jam championship game on Monday night at the University of the Virgin Islands.
Crowder's run-out basket came after a Spartan turnover near mid-court and helped the 16th-ranked Golden Eagles (5-0) survive a spirited NSU team (3-2) that they beat by 31 a week ago.
NSU survived a cold shooting start, two early fouls by O'Quinn and a 16-point first-half deficit to put a scare into Marquette, which advanced to the NCAA Tournament's Sweet 16 last year. The Spartans tied the game on two occasions late in the game, and even despite Crowder's go-ahead bucket, still had a chance to win.
After Crowder's score gave Marquette a 59-57 lead, NSU forward Marcos Tamares missed a 3-pointer at the other end. Marquette had a chance to extend its lead, but Darius Johnson-Odom missed the front end of a 1-and-1 free throw opportunity.
The Spartans called timeout and put the ball in the hands of sophomore guard Pendarvis Williams, who had tied the game earlier with a 3-pointer. Williams dribbled the ball of his foot and nearly lost possession, but he regained the loose ball and found O'Quinn on the right wing. O'Quinn pump-faked a defender off his feet to get a clear look at the basket, but the center's 3-pointer bounced long off the rim with four seconds left. Chris McEachin chased down the offensive rebound and lobbed a last-gasp jumper at the rim, but it fell short as time expired.
That the game came down to a final possession was a testament to the gritty play of NSU, which upset CAA preseason favorite Drexel and TCU of the Mountain West Conference to reach the final. Marquette scored the game's first eight points before NSU first got on the board with a McEachin 3-pointer at the 15:43 mark of the first half. By that time, NSU had missed its first five shots and O'Quinn was on the bench with two fouls.
The Golden Eagles gradually stretched their lead to as many as 16, at 29-13, on a Johnson-Odom jumper with 5:52 remaining in the half. But the Spartans didn't fold, holding Marquette to just four points for the rest of the half. Brandon Wheeless, meanwhile, drained a 3-pointer from the right wing to cut NSU's deficit to 33-24 going into the break.
Marquette quickly pushed its lead back into double digits early in the second half, and got two 3-pointers by Crowder to open up a 47-33 lead with 11:56 left in the game. But NSU rallied again, putting together a 12-3 spurt to tie the game at 52-all on a fast-break layup by McEachin.
Marquette appeared to take control after a layup by Suffolk native Davante Gardner that made it 57-54 in the Golden Eagles' favor, but Williams answered with a step-back 3-pointer from the left wing to tie the game with 2:09 left.
Johnson-Odom finished with a game-high 20 points for Marquette to earn tournament MVP honors. Crowder added 14 for the Golden Eagles, who were held to 38 percent shooting by the NSU defense.
O'Quinn had 10 points, 13 rebounds, three assists and two blocks for NSU to earn all-tournament team honors. He averaged 12.7 points, 12.3 rebounds and 3.7 blocks, recording double-doubles in all three of NSU's games in the Virgin Islands. McEachin also had 10 points, while Jamel Fuentes had a season-high eight off the bench. Williams and Tamares added seven points apiece.
Despite the loss, the Spartans still took home second place in a tournament ahead of teams from the ACC, SEC, CAA, Mountain West, Missouri Valley and Southern conferences. The second-place finish is the best ever for an HBCU team at the Paradise Jam.
The Spartans return home for their next four games, beginning with a 4 p.m. Sunday matchup with Eastern Kentucky.
