BOX SCORE

(NEW YORK, NY) Gregg Thondique stuck two free throws with 21.7 seconds left to lift Virginia Union to a 52-51 Big Apple Classic victory over Bowie State. The loss, Bowie State's third in a row, also marked the third time Virginia Union has captured the Big Apple Classic title.

Bowie State (4-4, 2-2 CIAA) scored the first four points of the Third Big Apple Classic but Virginia Union countered with a 10-0 run to open an early Panthers lead. Virginia Union took its largest lead of the first half at 19-12 only to have Bowie State put together a 7-0 run and tie the game at 19 on a steal and layup by junior Andrew Engel (Glen Burnie, MD, Old Mill, Colby C.C.). Delmar Carey (Charlotteville, VA, Monticello, Coastal Georgia C.C.) shifted the advantage back to Bowie State on a stick back with 22.0 remaining only to have Gregg Thondique answer with a jumper to knot things up at 21-21 just before the first half ended.

Virginia Union (3-3, 1-2 CIAA) turned the ball over six times in the first half and Bowie State committed five turnovers. Bowie State played a strong inside game outscoring the Panthers 16-4 in the paint. BSU's Bulldogs led the overall first half glass war, outrebounding VUU's Panthers 19-17.

Neither team shot very well from the Madison Square Garden floor in the first half. Virginia Union hit 7-of-24 from the field (29%), 3-of-11 behind the 3-point line and 4-of-7 in free throws (57%). Bowie State shot slightly better, connecting on 9-of-26 from the field (35%) and 3-of-6 from the free throw line (50%).

Virginia Union's Braxton Byerson opened the second half by hitting his second 3-pointer of the game. Bowie State's Engel quickly responded on the other end with a three of his own. BSU's Bulldogs led by four (30-26) at the 16:43 mark but VUU's Panthers pulled even and then went ahead by two, courtesy of a 7-0 run.

The lead would change hands two more times before Bowie State took its largest lead of the game (49-44) with 3:34 left to play. Following a Virginia Union timeout, Braxton Byerson nailed his third triple of the contest, cutting the Panthers deficit to 49-47. Bowie State junior Cassin Diggs (Williamsport, PA, Williamsport, University of Pittsburgh) gave the Bulldogs a little breathing room with a tough inside move, scoring a second chance layup. Brandon Byerson trimmed the BSU lead down to one (51-50), after scoring a traditional three point play following a foul by BSU's Corey Camphor (Upper Marlboro, MD, DeMatha).

With 21.7 seconds left on the clock, Bowie State's Diggs committed his fifth foul on Virginia Union's Thondique. Thondique calmly drained his double bonus free throws but Bowie State still had a chance. BSU's Armond Hill (Silver Spring, MD, Springbrook, Montgomery - Rockville C.C.) drove a Virginia Union defender hard to the basket but just missed the layup. In a scramble for the loose ball, players were all over the floor until a held ball was called. The possession arrow favored Bowie State and the Bulldogs called a timeout to setup a play. Camphor received a pass, rolled to the left corner in front of BSU's bench and just missed a 3-pointer as time expired.

“I told the guys at halftime the best feeling in the world is when you play a tough game and win a game, but the worst feeling in the world is when you play so hard and put everything out there and you lose the game … that's tough to swallow”, said Bowie State Head Coach Luke D'Alessio. “It's a learning process … We had a five point but did do a very good job with shot selection down the stretch, included missing free throws at a critical time.”

Engel scored a team-high 13 points to pace the Bulldogs. Diggs scored 12 points before fouling out and senior Curtis Massey added 11 points and a game-high 11 rebounds in the setback.

Virginia Union's Panthers were led by Braxton Byerson with 14 points and his brother Brandon Byerson added 13 points. Thondique finished the game with 11 points to go along with a team-high nine rebounds. Virginia Union will play one more game before the Christmas break, traveling to Augusta (Ga.) State – Saturday, December 13th.

Bowie State will return home for the first time since mid-November to host the Rams of Shepherd (W.Va.) University at 7:30 p.m. in a non-conference contest.