Davidson College
at Elon
Curry's Late Game Heroics Lead 'Cats to Comeback Victory at Elon
1/9/2008 10:30:21 PM | Men's Basketball
Marc Gignac
Box Score
Postgame Interview (Windows Media Player)
Link to video highlights (click test drive, bottom of page)
ELON, N.C. – Stephen Curry scored Davidson's last eight points, including an off-balance game-winning runner in which he changed his shooting hand to his left in mid-air, as the Wildcats prevailed in a hard-fought 59-57 SoCon victory over Elon Wednesday night at Alumni Gymnasium.
The sophomore's shot came with a minute to play. The Wildcats got the ball back, forcing Elon (6-9, 4-3) to foul, but Max Paulhus Gosselin missed the front end of a one-and-one with 22.9 seconds to play.
Davidson (7-6, 5-0) defended like their lives depended on it for the remainder of the game, knocking the ball out of bounds three times and forcing Phoenix freshman Chris Long to miss a deep 3-point try as the buzzer sounded.
Curry finished with 15 points after going 1-for-10 from the floor for the first 37:31 of the contest. Thomas Sander collected 12 points and 13 rebounds for his 10th career double-double and had a number of big offensive boards late in the game. Paulhus Gosselin finished with eight points, and Andrew Lovedale added nine points and seven rebounds.
Montell Watson led the Phoenix with 15 points and Brett James added 14.
After a Scott Grable layup and a pair of Watson free throws gave Elon a six-point lead, Curry drilled a 3-pointer from the wing, his first of the game, to make the margin 57-54 with 2:29 remaining.
The 'Cats got a stop on the defensive end, but Curry's jumper rimmed out. Sander dug out the rebound, and Curry drilled a deep trey from the wing with hands in his face to tie the game with 1:38 to play.
The 'Cats suffered through a sluggish first half in which they committed 13 turnovers and shot a meager 38.5 percent from the field, including 3-for-10 from 3-point range. Davidson scored a season-low 24 points in the frame.
With the score tied 17-17, Elon used a 9-2 run to open a 26-19 cushion midway through the opening period. A Barr 3-pointer from the top of the key halted the run, and the Phoenix went into the locker room with a 28-24 cushion.
The 'Cats changed their strategy in the second half, opting to go inside. Davidson big men scored 14 straight points midway through the frame. The last eight were part of a 10-2 run that gave Davidson a 48-46 advantage at the halfway point, its first cushion since leading 14-13 early in the game. The spurt erased a six-point Davidson deficit.
The Wildcats continue their three-game conference road swing at Wofford Saturday, Jan. 12, in a 7 p.m. contest.
Game Notes: Davidson starts SoCon play with a 5-0 mark for the second straight season and fourth time under coach Bob McKillop… Davidson extended its regular-season conference win streak to 15… Lovedale made his third consecutive start… Five of the next six are on the road for the Wildcats.
