AVE MARIA, Fla.- The Ave Maria University men's basketball team finished off their first-ever regular season sweep of the Keiser University Seahawks on Saturday evening, holding on for a 72-70 victory at Donahue Gym. The Gyrenes, who honored their three seniors before tipoff, locked up the third seed in The Sun Conference Tournament, giving AMU a top three finish for the third time in the last four seasons.
The first big run of the game belonged to the Seahawks, who built a double-digit lead in the first half. With the game tied at 10, Keiser went on an 8-0 run to open up an 18-10 edge. After the Gyrenes responded with seven of the next nine points to get back within three, Keiser opened the lead back up to eleven with another 8-0 run. Ave Maria battled back in the final moments of the half, scoring the final seven points of the half, capped by a Mason Osborne tip-in that trimmed the Keiser lead to 32-29.
Ave Maria didn't take the lead back for nearly ten more minutes, as Keiser was able to keep the Gyrenes at bay. An Eric Klekas three-pointer with 10:07 on the clock finally gave AMU a lead, 55-54. Despite that, the lead would trade hands several times in the final minutes of the game, with Ave Maria holding a one-point lead entering the final minute.
With 32 seconds to play, Antwan Claxton got to the rim for the Seahawks, scoring and drawing a foul. Claxton missed the free throw, and Ave Maria quickly got the ball into the hands of Chayse Culpepper, who scored with 24 seconds left. On the ensuing Keiser possession, Core'Von Lott's layup was blocked by Daryl Lewis, and collected by Culpepper. Klekas made two free throws with eight seconds left, and Keiser's attempt to tie the game ended in a travelling call.
With his third point of the day, which came early in the second half, Eric Klekas became the sixth player in Ave Maria history to amass 1,000 points while playing for AMU. Klekas joined Leo Behrend as the only Gyrenes to score 1000 points in just two seasons on campus. The other four Gyrenes, who all played for head coach Jamon Copeland during his first tenure, are Kiel Lewis, Matt Chattin, Dylan Fugate, and Wendel Powell.
Matt Gillis was the standout performer for the Gyrenes, leading all players with 22 points and 13 rebounds. Gillis made ten of his 12 field goal attempts, including both of his three-point tries. Culpepper added 12 points, including his go-ahead layup in the final 30 seconds. Klekas topped 1,000 points with ten on the day, including eight in the second half.
To advance to the semifinals of The Sun Conference Tournament for the fourth straight year, the Gyrenes will need to do something no team in program history has ever done - beat Keiser three times in a single season. The rematch between the third-seeded Gyrenes and the sixth-seeded Seahawks is scheduled for 7:30 p.m. Tuesday night at Donahue Gym.
