Jan. 4, 2009
Box Score
CLARION - Marcus Robinson's 35-foot, desperation 3-pointer at the horn banked off the backboard and into the hoop to give Clarion a dramatic 87-85 come-from-behind win over visiting Kutztown Sunday afternoon at Tippin Gym.
Robinson's shot was the second clutch 3-pointer hit by the Golden Eagles (8-2), who trailed 84-81 in the final 30 seconds, in the game's last 10 seconds. Mike Sherry hit a 3-pointer off a screen following a Clarion timeout with 9.9 seconds left to tie the game at 84.
Kutztown (9-2) retook the lead when Andre Woodlin was fouled by Josh Yanke as he was driving to the hoop with four seconds to play. Woodlin hit the first free throw to put the Golden Bears back ahead 85-84, but he missed the second one.
After Woodlin's miss, Robinson got the uncontested rebound and pushed the ball up floor for the Golden Eagles. But it looked like any chance of a Clarion miracle was lost when he lost the handle on the ball just after crossing midcourt. But the junior tracked down the loose ball and heaved up the Hail Mary shot that won the game.
Clarion was actually down five points with 43 seconds left following two David Ben free throws but got a traditional 3-point play from Shameel Carty with 31 seconds left got the Golden Eagles back into the contest.
It was all Kutztown early with the Golden Bears using a 16-0 run in the game's first 6:36 to take a16-2 lead.
But Clarion, as it has done all season, slowly fought its way back into the game using a half-ending 8-0 run in the final 2:13 of the opening 20 minutes to get within a point, 43-42, at halftime on a Greg Parker jumper with two seconds left in the half.
The Golden Eagles then started the second half on an 18-9 run to take a 60-52 lead on a Yanke layup with 14:04 to play. A pair of 3-pointers by Sherry and two Yanke layups fueled the run.
Kutztown, though, answered back with a 17-2 run with Stephen Dennis scoring seven points and handing out two assist to go back ahead 69-62 with 10:18 to play.
Clarion then closed the gap to one a couple of times with the last being 75-74 with 4:21 to go before Kutztown went back up by five, 83-78, in the final minute.
Yanke led Clarion with 21 points and 12 rebounds, his fifth double-double of the season. Robinson and Sherry each added 16 points with Robinson getting five rebounds, three assists and two steals. Carty added 13 points and seven rebounds.
Dave Ben paced Kutztown, which shot a sizzling 57.9 percent from the field including 60.7 percent in the first half, with 24 points on 7 of 12 shooting and 10 of 15 from the line. Dennis added 18 points, six rebounds, seven assists and three blocks with all his points coming in the second half after first-half foul trouble. He ended up fouling out of the game with just over a minute to play. Ryan Washington added 15 points and eight rebounds for Kutztown.
Clarion outrebounded Kutztown 43-27 including 18-5 on the offensive glass.
The Golden Eagles return to action at 3 p.m. Saturday at Mansfield.
NOTES - Close games are nothing new this season for Clarion. The Kutztown contest was the fourth time in 10 games that a Golden Eagles game has been decided by two points or less, and Clarion has won all four of those games. It is also Clarion's fifth win of the season by seven points or less. The Golden Eagles have now won eight straight games decided by two points or less and 10 of 11 dating back to the 2006 season ... Clarion finished its season-long seven-game homestand with a 6-1 record winning the final six games. The 8-2 start is Clarion's best since starting the 2003-04 season 10-2.
