St. Louis – The Maryville men's team stormed back from a late double-digit deficit but Rockhurst sank one free throw with 1.0 seconds left to topple the Saints 61-60. The Saints trailed 60-50 with 3:18 remaining but forged a tie on an Ari Jackson 3-pointer with 29 seconds left. However, the Hawks were fouled going to the basket, and Maxim Romanov sank the game-winning free throw to stop the Maryville rally.
 
What Happened:
The Saints scored the first basket in the opening minute and held the lead all the way to halftime at 28-23. After a Rockhurst hoop, Jaeden Smith scored on an offensive rebound put back, and a triple by Kelvin Swims pushed the Saints on top 33-25. The Hawks took their first lead at 38-27 with just under 13 minutes to play. Ben Palacios knocked down a trey, and a JT Morgan bucket built a 42-38 lead for Maryville. Rockhurst went on a big run and built a double-digit lead before the Saints put on a full-court press to spark a rally.
 
After a Swims steal, Cameron Scales hit a jumper in the lane. The Maryville defense made a stop, and Harrison Vickers scored to trim the deficit to 60-54 with 1:27 left. The Saints forced another turnover, and Swims made one free throw. Yet another Rockhurst turnover led to a layup by Vickers to pull the Saints to 60-57 with 39 ticks to play. The Maryville press turned the Hawks over again, and Jackson's 3-pointer from the left wing tied the game at 60-60 with 28.8 remaining. Rockhurst worked the clock for a late shot that led to Romanov's game-winning free throw with one tick to play. The Hawks missed the second free throw intentionally. The Saints called timeout to set up one final play but a halfcourt heave missed the mark.
 
Swims led Maryville with 14 points and six assists, while Scales contributed 13, and Vickers finished with 11 points. Morgan hauled down a game-high nine rebounds.
 
Statistical Leaders:
Points: Kelvin Swims - 14
Rebounds: JT Morgan - 9
Assists: Kelvin Swims - 6
3-Pointers: six players - 1
Steals: four players - 2
Blocked Shots: JT Morgan - 3
 
Records:
Maryville: 9-7, 3-5
Rockhurst: 7-9, 2-4
 
What's Next?
The Saints look to sweep the season series versus William Jewell with a 3:15 p.m. contest Saturday, Jan. 22, in Moloney Arena. Maryville won the first meeting 66-57 in Liberty, Mo.