DePaul University Athletics
DePaul University
Cal Poly
DePaul Takes the Fifth with a Clutch Finish
12/21/2011 12:00:00 AM | MEN'S BASKETBALL
Dec. 21, 2011
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ROSEMONT, Ill. - A poised finish enabled DePaul to get off to its best start in 12 years.
Four free throws and a huge basket by Brandon Young and three Cleveland Melvin foul shots down the stretch staved off a perseverant Cal Poly team in the Blue Demons' 63-58 victory Wednesday night at Allstate Arena.
The fifth win in a row sends DePaul into the rugged BIG EAST Conference season with a 9-3 record as No. 1/1 Syracuse comes to Rosemont on New Year's Day.
"It's our best start (since 1999-00) and I'm enjoying it," said Young who tied teammate Cleveland Melvin for scoring honors with 16 points and also added six assists. "But we're not going to stop now.
"I missed one of two free throws earlier in the second half and my teammates told me to forget about it and stay positive."
Twice Young converted one-and-bonus opportunities in the final 3 minutes and 49 seconds, the second one providing a 58-53 lead. Melvin (16 points, eight rebounds, two blocked shots) missed a one-and-one with 2:48 left and hit one of two at the 1:56 mark.
Melvin stepped to the line with 5.4 seconds left and his team ahead 61-58 after missing a pair of foul shots with :23 on the clock.
"After I missed those two, all my teammates told me to keep on battling," said Melvin who buried his final two attempts.
"I knew he was going to make them," Young said.
That was in character with the tone of this game as DePaul played its most consistent 40 minutes of the nonconference season.
"I was really pleased with the way our team played tonight," said DePaul coach Oliver Purnell. "The half-court defense might have been the best it's been, and our guys rebounded the ball better.
"We played well down the stretch. Even though we didn't make all the free throws, we made the key ones. We made some steals at the end and I saw a lot of growth out of our guys tonight."
Purnell felt a sense of confidence on the sideline watching Young take command in crunch time.
"His poise was outstanding and he guarded well at the point of attack," Purnell said. "I felt comfortable at the end that he was going to get us a pretty good shot."
Purnell noted the 10 points from Jamee Crockett, the five assists and a critical steal by Jeremiah Kelly, Moses Morgan's clutch three-pointer and the four rebounds and four blocks from Donnavan Kirk.
"Donnavan was big for us," Purnell said. "He impacted the game with his blocked shots and defensive rebounding. He was our best inside player in terms of defensive presence."
A Young three-point shot followed by Crockett's slashing drive to the basket put the Blue Demons ahead 37-26 early in the second half. Cal Poly (8-4) went on a 13-5 run to pull within 42-39 at the 12:50 mark.
Back came the home team with a Worrell Clahar drive to the hoop and Melvin's three-point play. Drake U'u's basket with 7:28 left in the game cut DePaul's lead to 51-47. U'u scored on a bank shot with 6:03 to go and the Blue Demon lead was down to 52-51.
Melvin responded with a clutch basket and Young hit a pair of free throws for a 56-51 lead with 3:49 left.
U'u's three-point play brought the Mustangs to within 58-56 at the 2:26 mark. A Melvin free throw and a Young drive to the hoop restored a 61-56 lead.
Sparked by Crockett's long jumper and three-point shot, DePaul went on a 17-3 run in forging a 26-17 lead near the end of the first half. That was the biggest lead by either team in the first 20 minutes.
A Melvin basket gave the Blue Demons a 28-21 lead at halftime.
Cal Poly came into Allstate Arena with the No. 5 defense in the country (average points allowed per game). The Mustangs had held eight of their 11 opponents to less than 60 points.
After a 10-day break over the holidays, the Orange comes to town.
"I'm very excited about Syracuse," Melvin said. "I didn't get a chance to play against them last year because of an injury.
"Syracuse is No. 1, but we're not going to let that take away from our focus."
