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3/8/08 – Widener, champions of the Commonwealth Conference, saw its phenomenal season end with an 83-74 loss to St. Mary's (MD) in the second round of the NCAA Tournament in Greensboro, NC.

The Pride (23-6), competing in the NCAA Tournament for the 16th time in school history, were denied an eighth trip to the “Sweet 16.” The team was competing in their third consecutive tournament for the first time since making four straight appearances from 1975-78.

St. Mary's scored eight straight points and took all the momentum for a 67-59 lead with 6:43 left. Tyson Lesesne netted four points in that span, capping it on a layup.

The Seahawks (18-12) matched the Pride possession for possession, refusing to lose their edge. Widener closed to 71-66 with 3:19 remaining on a 3-pointer from junior Charles Jones (Philadelphia, PA), but St. Mary's (MD) scored eight straight for a 79-66 cushion with 1:14 to go. Calvin Wise had four points in that run and Alex Irmer ended it with an emphatic dunk.

Junior Nyere Miller (Washington, DC) scored 20 points for the Pride, one night after netting 21 in the first round against Averett. The MVP of the Commonwealth Conference Tournament shot 7-of-19 from the floor and 6-of-16 from 3-point range over 38 minutes.

Jones and sophomore Bobby Edmunds (Linwood, NJ) scored 12 points apiece and junior Matt Sosna (Stratford, NJ) had seven and eight rebounds for the Pride, who were held to 33 percent shooting (13-of-39) in the second half. The squad shot 42 percent (30-of-71) overall.

Wise netted 21 points on 9-of-13 shooting, Irmer had 20 and nine rebounds, and Lesesne contributed 14 points for the Seahawks, who shot 62 percent (13-of-21) in the second half and 57 percent (31-of-54) overall.

The Seahawks used a 13-5 run in just over four minutes for a 43-33 lead with 3:55 left in the first half. Mike Smelkinson scored five points in that run and Irmer netted four.

Widener ended the half on a 10-4 run to close to 47-43, thanks to Sosna banking in a 25-footer at the buzzer. Miller led the Pride with 12 points, helping his team shoot 53 percent (17-of-32) from the floor and hit six 3-pointers.

Irmer poured in 10 points for the Seahawks, who shot 55 percent (18-of-33) from the floor.