On Thursday, the St. Peters stunned Kentucky with a 10th-seed No. 15 win in the NCAA men’s tournament game.
On Saturday, he joined with truly rarefied air. In their second round matchup with No. 7 Murray State, the Peacoxes picked up where they left off with a 70–60 win over the Racers to secure an unlikely bid for the Sweet 16s. And, like Thursday, it wasn’t an accident. St. Peter’s has been the best team since the beginning.
The Peacocks have never been behind Murray State. They opened up a 32-27 lead at halftime and then scored the first eight points in the second half, as if to announce to their doubters that this was indeed happening. Murray State cut the deficit several times, but St. Peters got the answer each time.
Clarence Rupert (12) of the St. Peters reacts during the second half against Murray State on Saturday. (Photo by Andy Lyons/Getty Images)
Now the Murray State team, which started 31-2 on Saturday, is coming home with its third loss of the season and the first after 21 consecutive wins. Meanwhile, St. Peter’s plans to travel next weekend to Philadelphia, 90 miles south of its Jersey City, New Jersey campus. The winner of Sunday’s game between Texas and Purdue is waiting.
With this win, the St. Peters become the third No. 15 seed ever to come out on the second weekend of the tournament. “Dunk City” on Florida’s Gulf Coast was the first to do so in 2013. Oral Roberts repeated the feat just last year. Now St. Peter’s joins an exclusive club.
“It’s been an amazing ride,” head coach Shaheen Holloway told CBS after the game. “How about this… I’ve been telling these guys all year that no one works harder than them. What I put these guys through is easy. Practice is hard. Kudos to these guys.
The House Party duly celebrated the occasion.
Senior forward KC Ndefo led the St. Peters with 17 points, 10 rebounds and six blocks, including this late shot that underlined the win.
Junior guard Doug Edert added 13 points off the bench, including this late 3-pointer, to stifle Murray State’s play.
The story goes on
As a team, St. Peters capped Murray State at 34.6% shooting from the floor, won the rebounding battle, 38-31, and turnover difference, 12-10. As noted earlier, on Saturday it was the best team.
The Peacocks have yet another big test against a strength conference team in Philadelphia. But that’s the concern of next week. At the moment, it belongs to St. Peter’s Cathedral.