David Skara and Shane Hammink were the heroes in Valparaiso’s pulsating 72-70 win over BYU in Tuesday night’s NIT semifinals at Madison Square Garden.
Skara hit the go-ahead 3-pointer. Hammink preserved that lead by blocking the potential game-winning 3-pointer, after making three late free throws.
Skara nailed a 3-pointer with 17.7 seconds left, on a pass from Hammink, to break a 68-68 tie. The sophomore forward had six rebounds and a season-high 15 points — his highest total against a Division I opponent in his career — after going scoreless against Saint Mary’s in the quarterfinals.
“I was really fortunate for that ball to come to my hands,” Skara said of the 3-pointer. “I had confidence that Shane would find me. It was a great pass from Shane.”
The Crusaders (30-6), who added to their program-record wins total, will play either San Diego State or George Washington in the championship game 6 p.m. Thursday.
“This has been a wonderful experience for our program, for our guys,” coach Bryce Drew said. “The three home games we had were sensational. Getting to be in New York City and playing in the Garden, you’re a little worried about focus.
“But I’m extremely blessed to have the group that I have, and we were really resilient.”
Valparaiso led the Cougars (26-11) 46-30 when Alec Peters scored on a drive to start the second half. But it took several key plays down the stretch for the Crusaders to sustain their season for one last game.
After Skara’s 3-pointer, Chase Fischer’s putback — Vashil Fernandez blocked the initial shot — drew BYU to 71-70 with 7.4 seconds left. But Valparaiso once again completed its home run inbound, with Hammink bobbling the pass from Peters before getting fouled.
With 4.7 seconds left, Hammink bounced in the first free throw before missing the second. But the junior swingman blocked Fischer’s long 3-pointer — his fifth blocked shot — as time expired.
After Kyle Davis had given BYU a 68-67 lead with 1:19 left, Hammink also made the first of two free throws to tie the score at 68-68 with 1:04 left.
The Crusaders won despite committing a season-worst 20 turnovers, though they had none in the final 11-plus minutes. They won despite getting uncharacteristically outrebounded 45-42.
But Valparaiso’s defense still held firm, limiting BYU to 38.2 percent shooting.
More Top Picks Autel Robotics X Star Premium
“The start of the game, we were going a little too fast on offense and that can sometimes lead to careless turnovers. … It was a matter of surviving at the end,” Peters said.
The Crusaders endured that tense ending after it appeared they had control of the game. They led 44-30 at halftime, shooting 7-for-12 from 3-point range.
But they struggled against the Cougars’ 1-3-1 zone in the second half, going 4-for-16 from deep, and BYU used a 9-0 run to draw to 50-46 on Fischer’s 3-pointer with 14:13 left.
The Cougars took their first lead, 64-63, on Kyle Collinsworth’s 3-point play with 4:26 left. But Hammink answered with a dunk, and Skara added a basket to give the Crusaders a 67-64 lead with 2:23 left.
Peters joined Skara with 15 points. The junior also had nine rebounds and four assists.
Keith Carter had 13 points, five rebounds and four assists. Hammink and Darien Walker had 10 points each, with Hammink adding five assists and three steals.
Drew liked seeing five players in double figures.
“Our team has been balanced the last two years,” he said. “We’ve had multiple guys score, multiple guys step up.
“Alec has been sensational over the last six weeks. To beat good teams and win games, you have to have other people step up.”
Twitter @MichaelOsipoff