Pittsford, N.Y. — Salem State battled back from a five-point halftime deficit, but came up short as Tufts held
on for an exciting 84-81 victory in the opening round of the NCAA Division III Tournament at St. John Fisher College. The Vikings, playing in their first tournament since 2012 were led by
(Cambridge, Mass.), who played brilliantly in his final collegiate campaign. Fasion had a game-high 30 points, which put him over the 1,000 point mark for his career, and he topped all players with 14 rebounds, which made him just the seventh player in Salem State history with 1,000 points and 700 rebounds, ending his remarkable career with 1,018 points and 794 rebounds.
In a game that featured nine lead changes, it came down to the wire after a Sean Bryan (Lowell. Mass.) layup drew Salem State to within a point, 82-81 with forty-four seconds remaining. Following a turnover, the Vikings set up for a final game-winning shot, but a steal by the Jumbos Eric Savage (South Brunswick, N.J.) in the final seconds and two subsequent free throws by Tom Palleschi (Haverhill, Mass.) iced the game for Tufts, which held on for the 84-81 win.
Sparked by Faison’s nine first half points, the Vikings built a 24-18 lead with 6:42 remaining before halftime. However, Salem State went cold from the floor over the next three minutes as the Jumbos erased the deficit with a 15-0 run that put Tufts up 33-24 with 2:59 left. The teams traded points down the stretch before a three-pointer by Bryan pulled the Vikings to within five, 40-35 right before intermission.
Tufts built its largest lead of seven in the second half after a Palleschi layup put the Jumbos up 49-42 at the 16:34 mark. However, Fasion began his second half dominance to lead a Vikings’ comeback. Two buckets by Faison sandwiched around a Tyreik McCauley (Worcester, Mass.) layup put the deficit at just a point, 49-48, which then set the stage for an epic finish as both teams battled over the final 10 minutes with neither team gaining a lead larger than six.
Trailing 60-59, Faison scored 12 of his team’s next 15 points with the final two, tying the game at 74-74 with 4:26 left. A Shaquan Murray (Boston, Mass.) layup tied the game again before the Jumbos went on a quick 6-0 spurt, That lead was short-lived as Faison hit just his fifth three-pointer of the season before Bryan’s layup set the stage for the dramatic closing seconds.
Murray finished with 13 points while Shyheim Davis-Smith (Boston, Mass.) tallied eight points and six rebounds for Salem State, which ended their season 17-11.
