ARLINGTON, Va. – The Frostburg State men's basketball team had four players in double figures and led by as many as 17 points early in the second half but could not survive a late surge from an inspired Marymount (Va.) squad in a heartbreaking 76-74 defeat Saturday afternoon at Verizon Sports Arena.
 
Frostburg (10-13, 8-8 CAC) nailed seven three-pointers in the opening half and opened up a 13-point halftime lead. Marymount (8-15, 7-9 CAC) would not go quietly and a clutch layup from Dimitri Rucker with 2:50 left in the game lifted the Saints to their first home win since January 20.
 
Marymount entered today's conference matchup on the outside of the CAC Tournament picture but kept its playoff hopes alive with the come-from-behind victory. Frostburg drops to sixth in the league standings and occupies the final spot in the conference tournament if the season ended today.
 
Frostburg was firing on all cylinders in the first half and sophomore guard Lawrence Pettis, Jr. notched 15 of his game-high 24 points in the opening frame. Pettis added three assists, two steals and one rebound in 39 minutes of action. For Pettis, it's his third 20-point scoring output in the last four games and sixth in the last eight contests.
 
Overall, the Bobcats went 30-of-70 (42.9%) from the floor while the Saints went 26-of-55 (47.3%) from the field.
 
Senior guard Tyler Michael chipped in 13 points, scoring 11 of them in the first half, with three assists, two rebounds and one steal. Senior guard Dalton Gaus and junior forward Edwin Cole chipped in 12 points each. Cole snared a game-high 15 rebounds in his seventh double-double effort of the season.
 
Frostburg opened the game on a 9-4 run before a three from junior guard Daniel Alexander gave the Bobcats an 11-point lead, 35-24, with 4:53 remaining in the half. Back-to-back three-pointers from Michael at 2:26 and Gaus at 1:51 put the Bobcats up 43-30.
 
Pettis canned another three at 18:55 in the second half as Frostburg took its largest lead of the day at 50-33. Marymount went on an 11-5 scoring run, which included its first lead of the contest at 5:38, in a four-minute stretch and led 69-68 with 3:32 left.
 
The Saints would not trail again despite Alexander tying the game at 72 with a fastbreak layup at the 1:20 mark. Ibrahim Kamara converted a layup just eight seconds later as the hosts held on for the 76-74 victory.
 
Rucker posted a team-high 22 points for Marymount and four other players scored in double figures.
 
Frostburg plays one final regular season road game on Wednesday, February 14 against Southern Virginia at 6:00 p.m. before returning home for Senior Day against Wesley on Saturday, February 17.
 
For up-to-date game information, including live stats and video streaming, visit frostburgsports.com.