BOX SCORE
DEFIANCE, Ohio -- Hanover College sophomore VJ Billups scored on a layup at the buzzer as the Panthers earned a 65-63 victory over Rose-Hulman Institute of Technology in the opening round of the Heartland Collegiate Athletic Conference Men's Basketball Tournament on Friday night.
With the score tied in the final seconds, Hanover senior Kyle James faked a potential game winning shot and made a pass to the cutting Billups inside at the buzzer. Billups made a catch and score just a fraction of a second before the buzzer for the end of regulation to win the game.
Rose-Hulman rallied from an 11-point deficit to gain a 61-60 lead in the final minutes of regulation. Hanover regained a 63-61 lead, but Rose-Hulman's Collin Wojcik tied the score with a transition basket at the 1:23 mark.
Hanover ran the clock down inside the final minute and gained one offensive rebound to keep the final possession alive. After the Panthers missed with 33 seconds remaining, the two teams scrambled for a loose ball and the possession arrow pointed to Hanover. The Panthers then ran the clock down to the buzzer for the game winning shot.
Junior Tyler Duffy scored 16 points on 6-9 from the field to lead the Rose-Hulman offense. Junior Matt Loesing added 12 points on 5-7 from the field, and senior Corey Povaleri also reached double figuers with 10 points and four rebounds.
Billups led the Panthers with 22 points on 10-20 from the field and 11 rebounds for Hanover. Michael Van Kleunen added 13 points and eight rebounds, while Wes McKinney scored 11 points for the Panthers.
Rose-Hulman shot 51% from the field and 56% from three-point range in the contest, but Hanover outrebounded the Fightin' Engineers 36-24 to help earn the victory.
Hanover advances on to the HCAC semifinal round against top-seeded Defiance College on Saturday afternoon.
Rose-Hulman completed a run of three consecutive HCAC Tournament championships with the narrow loss. The Fightin' Engineers also achieved their fifth consecutive winning season under first-year head coach Rusty Loyd.
