CHICAGO – Senior forward Davion Lawrence (Oak Lawn, Ill./Moraine Valley/Oak Lawn Community) made a pair of free throws with 5.4 seconds remaining in regulation to give Saint Xavier University men's basketball (6-7, 4-2 CCAC) a narrow 81-80 victory over St. Ambrose University (Iowa) in Chicagoland Collegiate Athletic Conference (CCAC) action Monday evening on Bob Hallberg Court at the Shannon Center in Chicago, Ill. in a makeup game that was postponed on Saturday, December 13 due to unsafe travel conditions in Iowa. The Fighting Bees had a chance to win the game in the closing seconds, however the go-ahead attempt missed off the backboard. Lawrence finished with a team-leading 18 points on 6-for-10 shooting, while going 4-for-8 from beyond the arc, and adding four rebounds, three assists and two steals in 28 minutes of play. Despite being outshot from the field by St. Ambrose, 57.4 percent to 43.9 percent, SXU made more three-pointers (14-8).

A three by SAU gave them an 11-8 lead at the 15:20 mark, however Saint Xavier responded with a 19-3 run to build its largest lead of the game, 27-14 with 8:44 left before the break, capped by a basket by senior guard Ike Nwaobi (York/Kilgore/Costal Bend/Westbrook). The Fighting Bees chipped away, tying the game on a buzzer-beating layup at 41-41 at halftime. SAU kept the momentum into the second half, taking its largest lead at 54-47 with 15:30 to go. A 9-0 run put the Cougars back on top, 57-56, three minutes later after a three-pointer by senior guard Mekhi Wilson (Covington, Ky./Iowa Central/Covington Catholic). The lead traded hands back-and-forth over the next eight minutes until a three by senior guard Jerry Abushanab (Glendale Heights, Ill./Oklahoma Panhandle State/Southwest Baptist/Link Prep) put SXU up 71-66 at the 5:56 mark. Another run by St. Ambrose put them back on top, 72-71, two minutes later. The lead see-sawed between both teams down the stretch, Abushanab knocked down a trey for a 79-76 advantage, but the Fighting Bees would take the lead on foul shots before Lawrence drew a foul at the end of the contest.

• Abushanab posted his first double-double of the season, grabbing a season-high 10 rebounds with 10 points. He also had three assists and two steals in 28 minutes on the court.
• Wilson tallied 13 points, making three of his six three-point attempts, with four rebounds and a steal in 26 of action.
• Junior guard James Morgan (Chicago, Ill./South Suburban/Lincoln Land/East Chicago Central) was 3-for-5 from deep, collecting nine points with an assist, a rebound and a steal in 14 minutes off the bench.
• Nwaobi recorded eight points on 3-for-6 shooting.
• Senior forward Grant Martin (Ridgecrest, Calif./Cal State-Long Beach/Citrus/Burroughs) registered seven points, three rebounds, two steals and an assist.
• Senior guard Ashton Atwater (Kalamazoo, Mich./Kalamazoo Valley/Ostego) chipped in six points, four assists and a steal in the win.

Saint Xavier (6-7, 4-2 CCAC) plays University of St. Francis (Ill.) in a CCAC contest on Wednesday, January 7 in Joliet, Ill. The game is slated for a 7:00 pm start.