BELFAST, Northern Ireland (AP) Mike Morsell hit a baseline jumper with 1.5 seconds left to give Towson a 56-55 victory over Manhattan on Saturday for the championship of the inaugural Basketball Hall of Fame Belfast Classic.
Towson missed two shots in the final 11 seconds but both times the ball went out of bounds to the Tigers after scrambles for rebounds, the final time with 3.2 seconds left. Morsell then scored off the final inbounds pass.
The Tigers, who led for only 48 seconds, took their first lead of the second half, 52-50, after Zane Martin snagged the ball following a scramble at halfcourt and scored with 2:23 to go. Manhattan’s Calvin Crawford responded with a 3-pointer and another bucket to put the Jaspers up 3 with 1:22 left. Another Martin layup cut the lead to 55-54 before Manhattan turned the ball over setting up the final sequence.
Martin was 9-of-14 shooting and scored 20 points for the Tigers (8-1), who have won eight straight since a three-point loss at Old Dominion in their opener.
Aaron Walker Jr. scored 16 points and Crawford 15 for the Jaspers (3-5) with Zane Waterman grabbing 10 rebounds to go with nine points.
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