By: Ryan Chichester

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The Quinnipiac men’s basketball team has an unhealthy obsession with nail-biting hysteria.

What started as one of the most impressive performances of the Bobcats’ season quickly turned into their most deflating loss, as the Bobcats missed a golden opportunity to draw closer to a bye in the MAAC tournament.

Fairfield, who entered the game just one game back of Quinnipiac in the MAAC standings, erased a 16-point deficit with 13 minutes remaining to claim a thrilling 102-98 victory in double-overtime at Webster Bank Arena.

After being held in check for the first 20 minutes, Tyler Nelson showed why he leads the MAAC in scoring, by drilling five threes in the second half to lead the furious comeback. Nelson’s heroics came shortly after his fadeaway jumper made him the leading scorer in Fairfield history early in the second half. The Webster Arena responded with a standing ovation before a video tribute for the senior was played at the next timeout.

Down by two, Nelson hit a tightly-contested three to put Fairfield on top with 44 seconds left. He would make a pair of free throws to seemingly ice the game and seal a comeback win, but the ice was in the veins of freshman Rich Kelly.

After failing to find an open look at a potential game-tying shot, Kelly hit a tightly-contested three-pointer with 1.9 seconds left to send the game to overtime, and set up yet another wild finish for the Bobcats. Kelly finished with a ridiculous 40 points.

“I’m happy with the way I played, but I’m obviously not happy with the outcome,” Kelly said after his career day.

Kelly would score five-straight in the first overtime, but with a chance to take the lead with under 10 seconds left, Cam Young missed two of three free throws to send the game into another extra period.

After a back-and-forth five minutes, the Bobcats had possession down by one but committed a costly turnover, leading to an easy Nelson layup to doom the Bobcats.

“We just didn’t have the habits to get it done for 40 minutes,” Dunleavy said after the game. “As always, I’m proud with the way we fought. It’s a difficult task to come in this building and knock a good team off.”

For the first 30 minutes, the Bobcats appeared to be on their way to an easy and much-needed victory, led by an unexpected source of production.

Alain Chigha, who hadn’t played more than eight minutes in a game since early January, forced a Fairfield turnover and converted a bucket at the other end to spark a quick 9-3 run. Chigha later forced a pair of steals, grabbed two offensive rebounds that led to a Rich Kelly three-pointer, and nailed a corner three of his own in just his first eight minutes on the floor. He would finish with five steals.

Alain Chigha (PC: Quinnipiac Athletics)

“He was our MVP,” Dunleavy said. “I know Rich had 40, but Alain came up big in a time where we really needed him.”

Chigha’s hustle plays led to multiple open looks for the Bobcats, who shot 7-14 from downtown in the first half. Kelly led the way with a red-hot 4-6 start from beyond the arc.

Feb. 17 MAAC Standings (PC: MAACSports.com)

The Bobcats carried their hot shooting into the second half and built a 16-point lead, but Jonathan Kasibabu erupted for seven-straight points to send the Stags on an 11-0 run, and Nelson would follow suit to set up a crushing defeat for the Bobcats, who will be in a dogfight for fifth place in the MAAC in the final three regular season games.
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