WEST HAVEN, Conn. – Mike McCahey's putback at the buzzer in overtime guided visiting Saint Anselm to an 85-83 win over the University of New Haven men's basketball team on Wednesday afternoon at Charger Gymnasium. Jeffery Adkins (Piscataway, N.J./Piscataway) scored the 1,000th point of his career as a part of a team-high 21 points.
 
With the overtime loss, the Chargers fall to 9-4 overall and 4-3 in the Northeast-10. Saint Anselm, the reigning NE-10 regular season champion, improves to 9-4 with a 7-2 conference mark.
 
Adkins' 21 points boost his career total to 1,011 in four seasons with the Blue and Gold. He is the 33rd member of the 1,000-Point Club overall at New Haven and the second active member alongside classmate Justin Exum (Brooklyn, N.Y./Xaverian). Exum, who ranks 13th all-time in scoring for the Chargers, reached an even 1,400 career points with his 16 tallies today.
 
Overall, New Haven shot 31-for-58 (53.4 percent) from the field, 8-for-20 (40 percent) from three-point range and 13-for-17 (76.5 percent) from the free throw line.
 
Eric Anderson (Newark, N.J./Newark Tech) added 20 points down low with six rebounds, four blocked shots and three steals. Also in the post, Cyrus James (Manchester, Conn./Howell Cheney Tech) neared a double-double with 10 points and nine rebounds in addition to five blocks. Ashanti DePass (Baldwin, N.Y./Baldwin) buried three three-pointers en route to 14 points as all five New Haven starters scored in double figures for the first time this season. Jemal Mosley (Spring Valley, N.Y./Don Bosco Prep / Putnam Science Academy) rounded out the offense with two points off the bench.
 
In addition to his milestone and team-leading scoring output, Adkins distributed a season-best nine assists.
 
Defensively, the Chargers limited Saint Anselm to 29 second-half points to facilitate a comeback after trailing by as many as 15 points in the first frame. Had the game ended in regulation, the 70 points allowed by New Haven through 40 minutes would have been a season-best against the Hawks. Saint Anselm entered the contest leading the NE-10 in scoring with 88.8 points per game, while New Haven slotted atop the conference and second in NCAA Division II with 59.4 points per game allowed.
 
McCahey's game-winner capped a double-double in which he posted two game highs with 25 points and 12 rebounds. Chris Santo also notched a double-double for the Hawks with 14 points and 10 boards.
 
Saint Anselm began the game on a 7-2 run before a DePass three-pointer and Exum jumper created the first of 10 ties in the contest at 7-7. The Hawks ran out to lead that grew as large as 37-22 at the 3:58 mark. The margin held at 41-28 into final minute before Adkins hit his milestone layup and added a jumper to send New Haven into the locker room facing a 41-32 deficit.
 
A 13-3 run featuring treys from DePass, Anderson and Adkins pushed the score to a deadlock at 46-46 with 15:14 to go in regulation, but Saint Anselm went on to rebuild a cushion as large as eight points. The margin stood at seven points, 63-56, when DePass hit two free throws and Adkins buried his second triple to cut it to a single possession. After a bucket for the Hawks' Roy Mabrey, James converted on a pick-and-roll and then scored again to tie the game at 65-65 with 3:58 to play.
 
On the next Saint Anselm possession, McCahey hit a jumper and Anderson answered with a deuce. The Chargers would then get two straight stops, cashing in on the second with another Anderson bucket to take their first lead of the second half at 69-67 with 1:38 left. Neither team would score for over a minute, as the Hawks had to give four fouls to put New Haven on the line. DePass hit 1-of-2 from the stripe with 28 seconds remaining. With the shot clock off, Saint Anselm found Mabrey, who drained a well-contested three-pointer to tie the game with 15.7 seconds to go in regulation. Both squads turned in another empty trip, with the Hawks missing a three-pointer at the buzzer to send the contest into overtime.
 
Exum began the extra session with a three-pointer, but John Neilsen answered in kind for the Hawks. After Exum hit three foul shots, McCahey sank a jumper to cut the New Haven to 76-75, and the Chargers were then the first team to waver in overtime with a scoreless possession. Neilsen's second three-pointer of the period put Saint Anselm on top and, after Adkins hit 1-of-2 free throws, a long jumper by Neilsen extended the lead to 80-77 with 2:21 to go.
 
After a New Haven timeout, Anderson buried a trey to tie the game at 80-80 and hit one free throw on the next possession to stake the Chargers to an 81-80 advantage with 1:06 left. Neilsen's third trey of the overtime and fifth overall on six attempts reclaimed the lead for the Hawks. On the ensuing UNH trip, Exum converted a step-back jumper to the tie the game at 83-83 with the shot clock turned off. Again, it was the Hawks who held the ball for the last shot. Mabrey missed a three-pointer and Santo was off the mark with the putback, but McCahey's follow-up at the horn sent Saint Anselm home with an 85-83 decision.
 
The Chargers continue their trek through the Northeast-10's Northeast Division on Saturday, Jan. 11 with a trip to Assumption. Tip-off in Worcester, Mass. is scheduled for 3:30 p.m.