Men’s Basketball Wins on Last Second Shot
Bryson Fonville lifts up to release the ball for a layup against Wesley.
By Jimmy Cassidy
While most of Catholic University’s student body was away for Thanksgiving break, the men’s basketball team won a thrilling contest on a game-winning shot from senior guard Bryson Fonville with .8 seconds left against Wesley College. On Sunday, November 29th, the All-American knocked down a jump shot with under a second left in the game to win 94-92. In a back and forth contest that featured double digit leads for both teams, Catholic came out on top thanks to three different players who contributed at least 20 points. Catholic, ranked #22 in Division III men’s basketball, moved to 3-2 on the season. The loss dropped Wesley’s record to 1-3 on the year.
Catholic shot an impressive 50% from the field in the high-scoring affair, making 32 of their 64 attempts. The group was also proficient from the free throw line, going 22-24 at the charity stripe. CUA’s offensive output came from almost strictly their starting five, who contributed 88 of the team’s 94 points. Sophomore Jay Howard led the way with 27 points on 10-15 shooting. Junior forward Corey Stanford added 26 points of his own, which included four 3-pointers and a perfect 10-10 on free throws. Fonville had a double-double in the game, with 20 points and 13 assists.
Wesley played Catholic evenly for just about all of the contest. They shot 57% from the field and an even more impressive 53% from behind the three point line. The Wolverines had control for a good portion of the first half, including an eleven point lead with five minutes to go in the first half. The Cards headed into the locker room with optimism after cutting the deficit down to just 3 for a 44-41 halftime score.
The momentum definitely carried on the side of the home team at the Raymond A. DuFour Center in the second half. In the first several minutes of the second 20-minute period, CUA went on an impressive 23-5 run that included four big 3-pointers. The lead for the Cardinals was at 15 with thirteen minutes remaining, 64-49. Wesley answered with a run of their own to make the contest very interesting as the time in the game dwindled. Catholic held on to a 92-86 lead with just under two minutes to play, but Wesley scored six points to tie the game with fourteen seconds.
The Cardinals had possession of the ball, and the team trusted their leader, Fonville. The guard broke a press from the Wolverines and pulled up for a jumper before the paint area. The shot fell, and the Cardinals took the 94-92 lead with .8 seconds on the clock. Time expired and the home team was victorious.
Catholic will be back in action on Saturday, December 5th at Moravian College at 2 PM.
