NEWARK, N.J. - James Madison's last hope hung precariously in the air in the form of a baseball-style pass from Terrance Carter to Juwann James, who was at the other end of the court. Seton Hall's Paul Gause made sure it remained just that - a last hope - intercepting it like the free safety he was in high school and holding on as the last 2.1 seconds of the clock ran out.
Gause, who committed and then de-committed to the Dukes in 2004, broke JMU coach Dean Keener's heart once again, and devastated a JMU squad that led the Big East's Pirates by as many as 19 points and by nine with just 1:17 remaining. The junior guard had 21 points, seven rebounds and four assists -- he also tied his own school record with eight steals -- to help Seton Hall to a 112-110 overtime victory in a crazy game in front of 6,317 fans at the Prudential Center.
Sophomore guard Eugene Harvey led the Big East's Pirates with 27 points as well as five assists. Senior forward Brian Laing had 21 points, and senior guard Jamar Nutter added 17, including three big 3-pointers.
Sophomore point guard Pierre Curtis paced Madison with 26 points to go with six assists, but missed an open runner in the lane in overtime that would have given the Dukes the win. He also committed 11 of Madison's 33 turnovers. Junior guard Abdulai Jalloh (20 points, 10 rebounds), senior forward Carter (18 and 10) and junior forward James (18 and 12) each recorded double-doubles, and junior swingman Kyle Swanston added 14, but all went for naught.
The loss snapped a five-game winning streak for the Dukes, who fell to 7-2. Madison dominated almost throughout regulation, had the Pirates (8-2) all but buried, and were just minutes away from claiming their first win over a major-conference team since beating West Virginia in 2001. Instead, they saw it slip away in an avalanche of turnovers.
"This stings," a somber Keener said after the game. "This is a tough one for us. Our kids hurt in that locker room. I thought we were the better team for the first 36 minutes."
The scoreboard certainly agreed. The Dukes did not seem intimidated by their Big East foe or its brand new arena and opened the game with a 14-3 run. They were up by as many as 15 points in the first half, held a 10-point lead at the break, and from that point didn't let the Pirates within 10 points until the 10:09 mark in the second half. Even when Seton Hall closed the gap to 75-70 with 7:58 to go, JMU answered with a 9-0 run to stretch it to 14 points.
But the Pirates got back in the game with full-court pressure, using a zone trap that swallowed the Dukes whole.
"Our press was the difference in the game," Seton Hall coach Bobby Gonzalez said. "... For whatever reason, they lost their confidence and they got a little shaky. It's just like anything else. Our guys are like sharks, when they smell blood, if you're uncertain against our press, you're in for a long day."
The last two minutes alone certainly felt like that for the Dukes. With freshman guard Heiden Ratner having fouled out, Madison committed at least seven turnovers in that period alone. JMU still led by four with just 20 seconds to go thanks to two free throws by Carter, but Harvey got an easy layup to cut it to 97-99 with 15 seconds left. Gause stole a pass on the next play and got it to Nutter, who drove to tie the game at 99 with 9.1 seconds to go. On the ensuing possession, Curtis found freshman guard Ben Louis open in the right corner, but Louis' attempt hit of the front of the rim to force overtime.
"We just weren't strong with the ball," Carter said. "They got their hands on a few passes. ... Guys gotta handle pressure a little better down the stretch."
In overtime, the Dukes took a 107-106 lead on a pull-up 3-pointer by Jalloh, but Harvey spun in for a bank shot layup on the next possession. Carter was called for traveling, and Laing got the ball, went up for a layup and was fouled for a 3-point play. Curtis hit a floater and got fouled for a 3-point play on the opposite end to cut it to 111-110 with 53 seconds left.
The Dukes forced Nutter to take an off-balance 3 with the shot clock running out, but Seton Hall got an offensive rebound. Jalloh fouled Harvey, who went to the line, but missed both free throws, giving Madison a chance to win it.
