MANCHESTER, N.H. – With 13:16 left in the second half, it looked like Post University Men's Basketball was headed towards their second loss of the season trailing by 19 points. But a gritty performance down the stretch while Saint Anselm was in the bonus resulted in one of the largest come-from-behind victories in program history for the Eagles.
 
A comeback capped off by junior forward Deng Deang's layup off the inbound from freshman point guard Ta'Quan Williams with 3.5 seconds left led to Post pulling off the improbable as they defeated the Hawks, 69-68, to move to 9-1 on the season which is their best start in program history, surpassing the 2012-13 team which started 8-1.

THE BASICS

#21 Post University 69, Saint Anselm College 68

#21 Post University (9-1)

Saint Anselm College (4-6)

HOW IT HAPPENED
A rough start for the Eagles saw them fall behind 10-0 over the course of the first 5:15 on the game as Post was 0-for-14 from the field to start the game. Junior forward Sean McCarthy led all scorers on the run with four points and the lead would balloon to as many as 12 points, 20-8, before Post would start to get going offensively.
 
An 8-0 run helped propel the Eagles back into the game with a three from junior forward Deng Deang and junior point guard Robert Sanders to make it a four-point game, 20-16. That four-point deficit would be achieved four times by Post throughout the first half, but they would never pull any closer as Saint Anselm ended the half on a 9-2 run to regain a double-digit lead by 11 points, 35-24, heading into the break. Fifth year guard Tyler Arbuckle led the way for the Hawks with 13 points on 6-of-12 shooting while Post struggled from the floor after the slow start, finishing the half 10-for-34 (29.4%) as a team.
 
Down just 10 points with 18:22 left in the second half, the Post defense would be unable to slow down the hot hand of the Hawks who matched them basket for basket before going on an 8-0 run to take a 19-point lead following McCarthy's layup at the 13:16 mark. But that would be when the tables would shift in favor of the Eagles despite already committing seven fouls against Saint Anselm to put them in the bonus.
 
Mounting an 11-0 run, Post trimmed their deficit to just nine points with 10:59 remaining which was their smallest deficit since it was 33-24 with 1:48 left in the first half. The lead would stretch back to double digits after a pair of free throws from junior forward Zac Taylor made it a 58-47 ballgame with 8:30 in regulation. Two more free throws at the 4:28 mark by Taylor stretched the lead for the Hawks once more to a healthy nine-point edge as Saint Anselm looked prime to knock off Post.
 
With 2:40 to go, the Eagles still trailed by nine after a layup from Arbuckle who finished the game leading the way for Saint Anselm with 23 points on 9-of-17 shooting. In response, Sanders hit a three before both teams went scoreless for just over a minute and a half as the stretch was mired by miss opportunities by the Eagles who forced three turnovers but missed a pair of shots and turned the ball over once.
 
That third turnover following an inbound turnover would be where junior point guard Bol Akot finally broke the scoreless drought for both teams, converting on the layup and hitting the free throw on the and-one opportunity to cut the Hawks' lead to three, 68-65, with 55 seconds remaining. On the other end, sophomore guard Josh Morissette's missed jumper gave the Eagles hope and Deang would score with 13 seconds left to make it a one-point game.
 
Following a timeout from Saint Anselm, Morissette would turn the ball over after stepping out of bounds near midcourt and giving Post a chance to win it with 9.9 seconds left. Akot would drive to the lane for the opportunity to give Post their first lead of the game but get swatted down by senior guard Jadon Archer with 4.5 seconds left, giving the Eagles one more chance out of a timeout by Head Coach Marc Kuntz.
 
The ensuing inbounds would see Deang cut towards the middle and lay it up off the pass from Williams with 3.5 seconds remaining before Akot would block a long pass attempt by the Hawks and a near-halfcourt heave by McCarthy would be wide left as Post stormed from behind to win the game, 68-67.

BY THE NUMBERS

• Deng Deang has started the season with 10 consecutive games in which he has recorded double-digit points, scoring 20 points today on 9-of-21 shooting – Deang also recorded his third double-double of the season with 12 rebounds
• After losing the first 11 matchups in the head-to-head, Post University extended their three-game winning streak against Saint Anselm to four straight games with the win
• At 9-1, Post University is now off to their best start in program history surpassing the 2012-13 team which rattled off eight straight wins after starting 0-1 before losing two in a row, falling to 8-3 that season
• Post University now holds a 4-1 record this season when facing teams that made the NCAA Tournament last season with the only loss coming against Southern New Hampshire University

WHO'S NEXT
Post University will have 11 days off for the holiday break before they return to action in primarily all conference action the rest of the way outside of two games. On the penultimate day of 2023, the Eagles will square off with Bloomfield College at 3:00 PM in hopes of moving to a perfect 2-0 in conference play this season. After winning four straight against the Bears, Post was swept last season in the home-and-home matchup by scores of 77-67 and 82-68, snapping that win streak.