Men's Basketball falls to Daniel Webster in the 3rd annual Midnight Game

Story Courtesy of Daniel Webster Sports Information

Nashua, NH – Powered by a game high 20 points from junior Ryan Gauthier (Nashua) and 18 from newcomer Demetri Conwell (St. Paul, Minn.), host Daniel Webster opened the entire 2014-15 season for NCAA Division III basketball in style, using an inspired and devastating 20-4 run over the final six and a half minutes of play in topping longtime crosstown archrival Rivier, 66-59 before an electrified standing-room-only crowd of 455 patrons early Saturday morning on the Eagle campus.

Ray Farmer (Nashua) pulled down a game-high 12 rebounds and Khial Watson (Ann Arbor, Mich.) chipped in with a key 11 points off the bench as the Eagles picked up their first victory in the three-year history of the series and beat the Raiders for the first time since 2011.

The annual matchup between foes in a series that dates back to 1992 is the most unique of its kind as the game tips off at 12:01 a.m. on November 15th, which is the first allowable date for Division III programs by the NCAA.

Kevin Francis (Cromwell, Conn.) and Cullen Donovan (Wethersfield, Conn.) led the Raiders with 12 points each while Jake Nelson added 10 and a team-high eight rebounds. Andre Ruff (Lowell, Mass.) chipped in with seven points.

The game honored former Eagle Daris Cosby, who completed his four-year playing career last season. Proceeds from the game's gate along with a game long raffle will be sent to the Cosby family as the Eagle great and former captain suffered major injuries from a car accident this past summer leaving him currently in a quadriplegic state.

The entire crowd stood in unison during the presentation of the national anthem with index finger extended, representing Cosby's uniform number one worn over his career and the fingers remained up until the first basket of the game was scored. Cosby, who retired as the 6th all-time leading scorer in DWC history and was a three-time conference all-star was able to view the contest with his wife live via webcast.

First half jitters and paltry shooting from beyond the arc (0-12) for the Eagles allowed Rivier to build a 32-24 lead at the half and the Raiders extended the lead to as large as 17 after a Francis three from the right side with 15:15 remaining.

Twice DWC whittled the lead to seven including after a Conwell layup for a 49-42 game with 10:24 to go, but Rivier would continue to find answers and still held an eight-point edge (55-47) with 6:25 left.

But the tide turned in a hurry over the find six minutes.

An inside spin from Watson pulled DWC within six and after a missed Raider three, Gauthier heated up. The junior knocked down a nifty 10-footer inside to cut the lead tow two and after another Raider miss from outside, Gauthier nailed a huge three from the top of the arc for the Eagles first lead since 9-8 at the 14 minute mark of the first.

An Edward Soucie (South Ryegate, Vt.) layup helped stop the bleeding for Rivier, but Steven Heck (Wilton, N.H.) converted inside and another Gauthier trey lit the Eagle crowd on fire with 2:25 to go. A Jake Nelson (Nashua) jumper with 47 seconds left cut the lead back to four (63-59), but Conwell went back inside for the clincher with 35 ticks to go.

When the smoke cleared, the 20-4 DWC run saw the Eagles hit on eight of their final 10 shots while the Raiders went ice cold, hitting just 2 of their final 10 from the field.

DWC would finish with a 42-36 advantage on the glass and a 34-28 win scoring in the paint. The Eagles, who shot just 28-percent in the opening frame, tore up the second shooting 55-percent while Rivier shots 41-percent in the first but 38-percent in the second.

Beyond its outside shooting woes, DWC was also almost undone by a tough night at the line (14-25) but made up for it with its late run.

DWC returns to action on Tuesday hosting Suffolk in a regional contest at 7:00 p.m.

Rivier faces Plymouth State on Tuesday at the Boys & Girls Club Classic played in the NHTI campus beginning at 8:00 p.m.