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SPOKANE, Wash. — By any measure, Phil Martelli's Friday represented the highest of highs and lowest of lows in college basketball.
His day started with a 6 a.m. phone call from his son Phil Jr., an assistant coach at Delaware, informing him that he was out of a job as head coach Monte Ross was fired. Ross just finished his 10th season with the Blue Hens after 10 years as an assistant with the elder Martelli at Saint Joseph's.
The day ended with the Hawks headed to the second round of the NCAA Tournament and a Sunday date with top-seeded Oregon after a wild 78-76 win over Cincinnati (see Instant Replay). The Hawks will face the Ducks, who rolled over Holy Cross, on Sunday at 9:40 p.m. on TBS.
The victory wasn't assured until the Bearcats' game-tying dunk at the buzzer was waved off following a review.
Isaiah Miles had put the eighth-seeded Hawks (28-7) ahead with a three-pointer from the left wing with 7.3 seconds left.
The ninth-seeded Bearcats (22-11) chose to push the ball up the court with Troy Caupain penetrating and wrapping a pass around a defender to Octavius Ellis under the basket for a dunk that was too close to call.
After calling the morning “really difficult, really difficult,” Martelli said the day was dedicated to the Hawks and what turned out to be an amazing game.
In the end, he seemed to have as much empathy for the Bearcats as he did for what happened earlier.
“In a small way, I wish it hadn't ended like that,” he said. “I wish it had ended with Isaiah making the three and us getting a stop. But at least, from what I could see, it was the right call.”
After a highly entertaining first half, which the Hawks led 41-40 thanks to DeAndre' Bembry's 20 points on everything from a rim-rattling dunk to a four-point play, the second half was a game of runs.
St. Joe's used an 11-0 run to take a 63-51 lead with 11:22 to play. Cincy responded with a 20-5 run to go up 71-68.
The Hawks scored the next seven to make it 75-71 with 2:39 left before Cincinnati made it a one-point game on a three-pointer from Farah Cobb. Then Ellis blocked Aaron Brown's jumper, leading to a run-out dunk by Jacob Evans for a 76-75 Cincinnati lead with 16.6 seconds left.
After a timeout, Bembry calmly dribbled on the right wing before reversing the ball to Miles.
“That's the first game-winning shot I ever had,” Miles said. “It's just an amazing feeling. But I definitely want to credit DeAndre' for looking for me. … Credit coach for the play.
“The play was drawn up well, and the guys reacted off the pick. And pick and pop, I've been practicing that since seventh grade and middle school. So just step into the shot and make the shot.”
Cincinnati coach Mick Cronin was succinct in his assessment of the final call.
“I have no comment on the officiating,” he said.
Earlier he said, “I feel terrible for my team.”
Waiting is the hardest part
With both teams waiting to hear the official ruling on Ellis' dunk, what was the mood like on the St. Joe's bench?
Excitement? Nervousness?
Actually, a little bit of everything.
“It was mixed emotions, different people were doing different things,” Bembry said. “When they showed the instant replay some guys were celebrating already. I was sitting on the bench just relaxing, chilling to see what [was] the call. Isaiah was just yelling at everybody. So it was just different mixed emotions.”
“When I saw the replay, I was -- I knew I didn't think it was good,” Miles said. “His fingertips were still on it, but everyone was telling me, calm down, calm down, we might have to play overtime, relax. Just get your mind prepared for overtime.
“But everything's going, the crowd's into it, I'm into it, and yeah, I was excited. I thought it was good. I thought that the game was over, but [at] the same time, my team was telling me keep your head, because you need to be ready for another overtime.”
Two halves
Bembry hit 7 of 9 shots in the first half, including three three-pointers, and had 20 points. He had three points in the second half but had five assists.
“The beauty of his game is his versatility,” Martelli said. “He's a really, really special player. But he's even more special as a teammate and as a leader.”
Miles had 14 of his 19 in the second half and Brown 11 of his 13.
Evans, a freshman, had 17 of his season-high 26 in the second half and Coreontae DeBerry came off the bench for a career-high 18, including three three-point plays.
The numbers
Pretty even as the score would suggest.
Cincinnati shot 51 percent and was 10 of 24 behind the arc; St. Joe's shot 48 percent, making 9 of 24 threes.
Cincinnati was 10 of 13 from the line and had 30 rebounds; St. Joe's was 13 of 17 with 29 boards.
There were 15 total turnovers and 26 assists, 13 apiece.