WATERBURY, Conn. – Senior forward Bol Akot scored 20 points on 8-for-17 shooting for Post University Men's Basketball to help the Eagles lead a second-half comeback against Assumption University in their final game in the Drubner Center of 2024 that would fall just short. Junior forward Daouda Dembele's layup with 22 seconds left in regulation would prove to be the difference maker for the Greyhounds, who squandered a 14-point lead with 14:34 left in regulation, in downing Post by a 73-70 final score. 

THE BASICS

Post University 70, Assumption University 73 

Post University (6-5)

Assumption University (6-2)

HOW IT HAPPENED
In a game featuring five ties and 12 lead changes, most of those instances would come down the stretch of the second half after the Eagles held the lead just one time in the first half after a 6-0 run on back-to-back threes from senior forward Deng Deang and graduate guard Tyler Small, 13-12. Before that, Dembele led a 4-0 run for the Greyhounds to put them up right after the tip who remained steady after falling down by that one point, going on a 7-0 run with five points from sophomore guard Myles Alcindor to go back up six points. 

Both teams shot over 40% from the floor in the opening 20 minutes with the Eagles going 12-for-26 (46.1%) overall and kept themselves in the game by making 7-of-10 (70%) three-point shots they took. That would be because an 18-for-32 (56.2%) first half by the Greyhounds paced them while making two threes, including one at the end of the half, to take a 39-34 lead heading into the break. 

After sophomore guard Ta'Quan Williams hit a three to make it a four-point game with 18:10 to go in regulation, a 10-0 run led by four more points from Dembele put Assumption up by a game-high 14 points, 51-37, with 14:34 left in regulation. A quick 6-0 blitz over the next two minutes got the Eagles back within eight and around a free throw from junior Baril Mawo, a 10-0 run from the Eagles gave them a one-point lead, 53-52, at the midway point of the half. That run was led by threes from Small and Akot as well as a go-ahead jumper from the senior and a dunk from graduate forward Harrison Warnock. 

Over the final nine minutes and change, there would be five ties and eight lead changes highlighted by 11 points from Akot in that stretch looking to will the Eagles to victory. Inside five minutes, Small's three helped Post regain a two-point lead, 65-63, before the Greyhounds answered back with a 6-0 run over the next two minutes to take their largest lead of the stretch by four points, 69-65, following a Dembele jumper with 2:28 remaining.

Answering back was Akot with five points of his own, including an and-one play to put the Eagles back in front by one with 38 seconds left, 70-69. Coming out of the timeout, Dembele hit another shot in the paint to give the Greyhounds the lead back and on the two ensuing shots from Post, Akot would be blocked by freshman guard Noah Payne and Small was turned away by Mawo in the paint forcing a foul with 2.8 seconds left from the Eagles. After freshman guard Lenny Tangishaka hit both free throws on the one-and-one, Deang's three at the buzzer, which was contested by Mawo, would miss just left of the hoop as Post fell 73-70 to Assumption at home. 

BY THE NUMBERS

• Bol Akot led all scorers with 20 points on 8-for-17 shooting with three rebounds and three assists -- Akot has reached double-digit scoring in four of his last five games and 20-plus points in three games now this season 
• As a team, Post University shot 42.3% from three-point range marking the fifth time this year in which they have been over the 40% mark -- The Eagles are now 3-2 this season when shooting over 40% from three 
• Post University stays 5-0 when leading at halftime this season while falling to 1-5 when trailing at halftime this season 
• In the last four all-time matchups, Post University has lost three of those to Assumption University and are 0-2 at home against the Greyhounds in that stretch 

WHO'S NEXT
Post University starts its four-game road trip which will last until after the new year on Wednesday afternoon against American International College (AIC) at 3:00 PM in Springfield, Massachusetts. The Eagles have won four consecutive matchups with the Yellow Jackets, all by double-digit margins since the 2019-20 season after losing the previous six head-to-heads from 2010-2018.