HAMBURG, N.Y. — Hilbert College made a layup at the final buzzer to defeat the Keuka College Men's Basketball team 74-72 on Saturday afternoon.

Lamar Lovelace led Keuka College (2-4) with a game-high 23 points. Makya Morrison was also in double figures with 13 points. The sophomore added a team-high eight rebounds.

Hilbert College 74 vs. Keuka College 72
The teams traded the lead early in the game on Saturday, but the Green and Gold began to inch ahead. Quinn VanKerkhove pushed the pace as he grabbed a defensive rebound and raced down for a transition layup to give the Wolves a five-point lead, 15-10. Makya Morrison hit a jumper midway through the half to give the Wolves a 19-13 lead, their largest of the game. Hilbert College rallied and eventually tied the game back up at 21. A three by Lovelace with four minutes left in the half pushed the Keuka lead back to six, but the Hawks scored nine straight to take a three-point lead over the Wolves. Keuka tied it back up at 31 on a jumper by Kaleb Nutifafa, but the Hawks made a free throw in the final minute to lead 32-31 at the break.

The game remained tight and a one-possession game for the first eight minutes of the second half. Hilbert used a 6-0 run to extend their lead to nine with ten minutes left in the game. The Wolves fought to cut into the lead and slowly began to shrink it down. A three by Lamar Lovelace at 3:38 completed the comeback and tied the game at 63-63. It was in the middle of a 7-0 run for the Wolves as Akinlana Popoola followed with a layup to give Keuka College the lead. Hilbert responded with a three to take a one-point lead, but a layup by Morrison gave Keuka the one-point lead back. Another three by Hilbert pushed their lead to two, but Morrison was there again for the Wolves with a layup with 2:03 remaining, tying the game at 69-69. Quinn VanKerkhove continued his strong defense with a steal on the next possession for the Wolves. The sophomore made his layup and was fouled for the three-point lead. However, the same happened at the other end of the court as Hilbert made a basket and was fouled for a three-point play to tie the game. The Wolves would get the ball with 34 seconds remaining and the game tied at 72-72. The Green and Gold worked the ball and clock down. Keuka's shot with eight seconds left was off and Hilbert got the rebound. The Hawks raced down the court and made a layup as the buzzer sounded. There was a lengthy review by the referees to check the play, but he basket was upheld with 0.0 on the clock as Hilbert College defeated Keuka 74-72.

KC Notes:

• The Wolves slide to 9-18 all-time against Hilbert College. The Hawks are 11-2 on their home floor against the Wolves and have won the last five against Keuka College overall
• Close games have been a staple between Keuka College and Hilbert College. Four of the last six matchups have been decided by two points or less
• Keuka College won the rebounding battle 44-37. The Green and Gold have won the battle on the boards in every game this season
• Lamar Lovelace had seven rebounds to go with his team-high scoring on Saturday. Kaleb Nutifafa also had seven boards in the game
• The difference in the game was felt from long distance. Hilbert College made eight threes in the game while the Wolves went 2-14 from deep. It was the lowest three-point percentage for Keuka College since February 2019

Up Next for Keuka College: The Wolves have a quick turnaround for their final game before Thanksgiving. The Green and Gold will be back on the practice court on Sunday and then travel to Rochester to face RIT on Monday night. Tipoff between the Wolves and Tigers is set for 6 p.m.