By Carson Hayek, Sports Staffer
ST. BONAVENTURE, N.Y. — On Valentine’s Day, the St. Bonaventure University men’s basketball team left the Reilly Center heartbroken following a 78-73 loss to Duquesne University.
Duquesne made eight of their first 11 threes in the first half, quieting the crowd of 4,112. The Bonnies trailed 39-21.
Bonaventure cut its deficit in the final six minutes of the half and trailed 45-33 at halftime.
Saturday marked the 16th time this year Bonaventure trailed at halftime. Bonnies head coach Mark Schmidt said the team needs to play with more urgency in the first half going forward.
“What lost us the game was the first ten minutes of the first half,” Schmidt said. “That was the difference. They had 11 points off turnovers in the first six minutes. We played with more of a sense of urgency in the second half, but we need to do that more at the beginning of the game.”
Exiting halftime, Bonaventure cut its deficit to three points, 52-49, within the first seven minutes, and energizing the crowd in the Reilly Center.
Bonnies senior forward, and game’s leading scorer, Frank Mitchell scored his 19th point of the contest with just over six minutes left in regulation. He gave Bonaventure its second lead of the game, 64-63.
For the next five minutes, each squad traded leads or was tied five different times.
Down 73-72, Dukes graduate forward Alex Williams sank one of just three Duquesne three-pointers in the second half to earn the visitors a 75-73 advantage.
Exiting a Bonaventure timeout, Bonnies sophomore forward Joe Grahovac missed a seven-foot turnaround jump shot with 45 seconds left.
Thirty-one seconds later, Duquesne’s leading scorer and junior guard Jimmie Williams drained a 29-foot three-pointer as the shot clock expired, handing Duquesne a 78-73 advantage, and causing a mass exodus of fans throughout the arena.
The five-point defeat marks Bonaventure’s ninth loss in a game decided by 10 or fewer points. Following the game, Mitchell said the Bonnies are scared to make a mistake when playing in close games late.
“We play tight, and we are scared to make a mistake, and that leads us to making mistakes,” Mitchell said. “I don’t think it has anything to do with the coaching; it has to do with the players. All the games we lose are like this. Coach said players make plays, and we have to find that in crunch time.”
St. Bonaventure falls to 14-11 (3-9 A-10), while Duquesne advances to 15-10 (7-5 A-10).
Bonaventure hosts Saint Joseph’s University, while the Dukes return home to play La Salle University. Both games tip off on Wednesday, Feb. 18, at 7 p.m.
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