OWINGS MILLS, Md. — The Southern Vermont College men's basketball team fought hard Saturday evening in the second day of the 2015 Hoopsville National Invitational Classic, but the Mountaineers eventually fell 79-67 to the University of St. Thomas – Minnesota in the tournament played at Stevenson University.

The Tommies (3-0), a team ranked fourth in the season's first D3hoops.com national top 25 poll, led by just four (34-30) going into halftime. They were able to open things up late in the game, however, to win the first all-time meeting between the two sides.

SVC (1-2) is back in action next Sunday, November 29 with a 1 p.m. inner-state showdown at Castleton University.

Mountaineer senior DeShawn Hamlet (Hartford, Conn.) led the team with 17 points in 19 minutes of action, adding five rebounds to his line; he is now just 10 points off tying the program's sixth-best all-time career mark and 17 from moving into sole possession of fifth. Hamlet was then selected to the Classic's All-Tournament Team for his performance over the weekend.

SVC Sophomore Daemond Carter (Forestville, Md.) followed with 14 points on a 4-8 clip from behind the arc, adding three rebounds off the bench. Senior William Bromirski (Cambridge, N.Y.) tallied 10 points and a pair of boards while senior captain Antoine White (Bethesda, Md.) tacked up six points and five assists to go with his team-best six rebounds.

St. Thomas shot at a 50.8 percent from the floor (30-59) while SVC put up a 36.2 field goal percentage (21-58). Both teams had a good deal of success from afar, the Tommies going 9-18 outside the perimeter while Southern Vermont was 7-21. Each side had nine points off turnovers as St. Thomas outscored the Mountaineers by a 38-34 margin from the paint.

Southern Vermont came out with strength and aggressive play, the tenacious SVC defense keeping the Tommies from getting their offense in full swing through the opening 10 minutes. After Southern Vermont won the opening tip, Hamlet hit a layup for the first lead of the night before freshman Jose Borders (Ft. Lauderdale, Fla.) knocked down a three-pointer for the 5-0 lead. Hamlet continued to be a force for the Mountaineers, scoring nine straight SVC points with the final two putting Southern Vermont up 16-14 with 11:02 to play. The Tommies averaged 79 points per game heading into Saturday, being in line to fall short of that mark midway through the first half.

St. Thomas then started to get things clicking, however, going on an 8-0 run while keeping the Mountaineers scoreless over the next four minutes of play. The Tommies scored six more unanswered points to go up 30-20 with 4:32 left on the clock, but Carter responded with a trey from the left wing on the ensuing possession to start a quick 6-0 SVC run that cut it to a four-point St. Thomas lead.

A jumper with 1:37 to go put the Tommies back up by seven, and two missed shots from both teams ran the clock down with St. Thomas up 34-27. With time winding, the Mountaineers grabbed a defensive board and ran the floor quickly, White going down the right edge before sending a skip pass across the court to Carter; the sophomore set himself and knocked down another three-pointer with just 34 seconds to go, the game then going to halftime with Southern Vermont trailing 34-30.

Shortly out of the intermission, White hit a shot from the right edge for what appeared to be a three, but the officials gave no indication that it was from long distance as the basket counted for only a pair to make it 37-32 early into the second half. The teams would play a handful of minutes until the next media timeout allowed SVC to ask the officials to go to a video review, one that showed White clearly behind the arc for the score to be adjusted. After Hamlet registered his fourth personal foul at the 18:20 mark during that stretch, the game saw Southern Vermont's guards come up big on both ends of the floor.

Junior Davante Jordan (Great Mills, Md.) made a nice swipe on the defensive side before Southern Vermont set up its offensive possession; the ball got back to Jordan who drove in from the left side, getting a pretty reverse layup to go to make it a 45-40 Tommie lead at the 13:33 mark. After a deep St. Thomas bucket, Carter answered right back by banging home a three of his own from the top of the perimeter to keep SVC within five.

Carter continued to be sharp from the outside, drilling another three on a step-back jumper just to the right side to make it 51-48 with 10:55 to go. A Tommie jumper followed by a long ball would open it up to an eight-point lead for St. Thomas, causing Hamlet to come off the bench and make an instant impact; White swung the ball down low with a right-handed bounce pass, and Hamlet took a dribble before going up strong to lay it off the glass. Senior Casey Hall (Albany, N.Y.) followed with a pair of free throws, making it 56-52 in favor of the Tommies.

St. Thomas would then take to an 8-0 run, however, going up by 12 for its biggest lead of the night. Bromirski knocked down a trey for the first three of five unanswered SVC points, but the Tommies were able to register the next two baskets to keep their separation. Two more St. Tomas threes put its lead up to 16 with time winding down, the Tommies completing the victory to remain perfect on the year.