Florida Atlantic Wins Thriller Over Santa Clara

Tuesday, November 18

Tucson, Ariz.

8:30 PM

Florida Atlantic

Santa Clara

11/18/2008 12:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball

Nov. 18, 2008

Box Score

TUCSON, AZ - Paul Graham III made a pair of clutch shots, including a go-ahead 3-pointer with 50 seconds left to give Florida Atlantic a 65-61 victory over Santa Clara in the NIT Season Tip-Off tournament.

Graham's late-game heroics allowed FAU (2-1) to overcome a dominant second-half performance by Santa Clara center John Bryant, who finished with a game-high 25. Bryant scored 17-straight points for Santa Clara (1-2) over the final 14 minutes and had put the Broncos up 58-57 with 1:50 left.

With FAU in a five-minute scoring drought, Graham dropped in a clutch basket and drew a foul, completing the 3-point play to give FAU a 60-58 lead with 1:20 on the clock.

James Rahon swished in a triple on SCU's next possession to put the Broncos back up 61-60, setting up Graham's decisive three.

Brett Royster blocked Bryant's shot with 8 seconds left, and Carderro Nwoji hit two free throws to seal it.

Shavar Richardson scored a team-best 17 for Florida Atlantic. One of Richardson's three 3-pointers extended the FAU advantage to six, 51-45 at the 10:17 mark.

Bryant was outstanding on the offensive end for Santa Clara in the second half. Whistled for two early fouls, Bryant played just 1:47 of the first half, but had 23 of SCU's 31 second-half points.

Two triples apiece by Richardson and Nwoji allowed FAU to lead by as many as eight in the first half, 26-18. SCU cut the defecit to two at halftime, 32-30.

Six immediate points by Bryant to open the second half helped SCU regain the lead 41-40 at the 15-minute mark.

Graham, a senior from Philadelphia, finished with 10 points and is now just two shy of reaching 1,000 for his FAU career. Nwoji added 12.

Graham should reach 1,000 in FAU's next game when the Owls host UMKC at the FAU Arena on Saturday night.