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Season
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February 3, 2007 Boyce is Clutch in Overtime Thriller
Laie, HI-Senior guard Eric Boyce drilled a running three-pointer from the left corner with 2.2 seconds remaining in the second half to send the game into overtime and then drained two free throws with 2.3 seconds left in overtime to lead the Brigham Young University Hawaii men's basketball team to a scintillating 93-89 win over Chaminade tonight in Pacific West Conference action. With 13 seconds left in regulation and the Silverswords up 81-78, Chaminade's Marko Kolaric missed two free throws that could have iced the game and Boyce grabbed the rebound on the second miss and shoveled the ball to Paul Peterson. Peterson was triple-teamed in the backcourt but broke free to pass the ball into the forecourt where the Seasiders got it into the clutch hands of Boyce who dribbled into the left corner and canned the game-tying three under heavy pressure to send the home crowd into a frenzy. Kolaric missed a desperation half-court try at the buzzer to send the game into the extra period. In the overtime, the Seasiders scored the first four points on a Wu Tai-hao jumper and a Lucas Alves dunk as the Silverswords missed their first five shots of the period. Zack Whiting finally pulled Chaminade within three with one of two free throws with 1:24 left. The Silverswords got the ball back when the ball was knocked out of bounds after Whiting's miss on the second free throw but Tai-hao blocked Kolaric's jumper and BYU-Hawaii recovered the ball. With the shot clock winding down on the ensuing BYU-Hawaii possession, Boyce fired an NBA-length three-pointer over Whiting that gave the Seasiders an 88-82 lead with 36 seconds left. Whiting canned a pair of free throws with 26 seconds left to cut the margin to four and the Seasiders misfired on two free throws nine seconds later but Tai-hao snared the offensive rebound off the second miss and was fouled immediately. Tai-hao drilled both free throws for a 90-84 lead and Whiting came right back with a layup with 11 seconds left. Corey Nielson the hit one of two free throws with nine seconds to go and the indefatigable Whiting answered with a three-pointer five seconds later to pull Chaminade to within two at 91-89. The Silverswords immediately fouled Boyce on the inbounds and he calmly iced the win from the charity stripe. The Seasiders, now 17-5 for the season and 9-1 in the PacWest, led by five, 44-39, at halftime and by as many as 13 points in the second half only to see the Silverswords battle back to take a seven-point lead, at 77-70, with just 2:17 to play. But the Seasiders hit eight straight free throws, four of them by Boyce, to take a one-point lead, 78-77, with just over a minute to play. Whiting answered for Chaminade with a layup and, after a BYU-Hawaii turnover, two free throws with 21 seconds to play for the 81-78 Silversword lead. The Seasiders misfired on the ensuing three-point attempt and fouled Kolaric on the rebound setting the stage for the dramatic finish. Alves scored 24 points to lead the Seasiders and pulled down seven rebounds. Tai-hao dropped in 22 and grabbed 11 rebounds for his second consecutive double-double and third of the season and blocked five shots which ties for the seventh-best total in BYU-Hawaii history. Boyce finished with 15 points, including three three-pointers and a perfect 6-6 from the free throw line where he is shooting 93.3 percent for the season. Boyce also matched his career high with seven rebounds and dished out three assists. Nielson added ten points, six rebounds, six assists, and two steals. Peterson finished with eight points, eight rebounds, and a team-high seven assists. Whiting, who led the Silversword comeback, scored a game-high 35 points for Chaminade and also had ten assists, eight rebounds, and three steals. Hayden Heiber tallied 15 points and Darrell Birton hit four three-pointers and finished with 14 points for the Silverswords. Kolaric grabbed a game-high 13 rebounds for Chaminade. The Silverswords are now 13-8 overall and 5-4 in the PacWest Conference. BYU-Hawaii will travel to Phoenix next week and will face Grand Canyon on Wednesday and Thursday at 7:00 pm MST. |
