Reggie Holmes scored 14 points and grabbed eight rebounds against the Spartans on Monday night.
Boxscore
NORFOLK, Va. -- Morgan State’s Boubacar Coly knocked down two clutch free throws with 9 seconds remaining to tie the ballgame at 69 apiece. The Bears seemed to have captured the momentum and appeared optimistic about their chances going into overtime.
However, following a timeout at mid-court, Norfolk State still had 4 seconds left on the clock. It was all the time they needed to extend to a four-game winning streak.
NSU guard Michael Deloatch inbounded the ball to Tony Murphy, who penetrated toward the top of the key, and threw a pass to Deloatch who was cutting open free in the lane. Deloatch threw up an off-balanced shot over the extended arm of Coly, the ball bounced off the rim and into the net as the horn sounded. Fans preceded to storm the court to celebrate the Spartans 71-69 win.
Deloatch’s buzzer-beater capped his 12-point, seven assist performance on a night when he just so happened to be celebrating his 22nd birthday.
The victory lifted Norfolk State to 6-8 overall and 3-0 in the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference, while the Bears dropped its first conference game of the season (7-8, 2-1 MEAC).
The shot erased a thrilling come-from-behind effort by the Bears. Norfolk State led 65-55 after a layup by Joseph Dorsett with 5:39 left to go.
Morgan State chipped away and a clutch 3-pointer by Reggie Holmes at the 1:31 mark pulled the Bears to within two points at 69-67. The Bears got a defensive stop on the Spartans ensuing possession and Coly was fouled in the paint with 9 seconds remaining.
Coly led Morgan State with his third double-double of the season. The senior forward finished with a game and career-high 24 points to go along with 12 rebounds and three blocked shots. Coly was impressive from the stripe as he connected on 12-of 13 free throws and shot 6-of-9 from the floor.
Holmes chipped in 14 points (4-6 3FG) and pulled down eight rebounds, while Marquise Katley added nine points and five boards.
Morgan State finished the game by shoot just 32.8 percent (21-64) from the field, and shot just 8-for-32 (25%) in the first half.
The Spartans took a 36-29 lead into halftime.
Murphy scored 16 of his team-high 21 points (8-9 FT) in the second half, while Corey Lyons finished with 20 points on 7-for-14 shooting.
Morgan State’s Jamar Smith, who entered the ballgame as the MEAC’s leading scorer averaging 19.1 ppg, was held scoreless in the first half and finished the night with 12 points, well below his norm.
