Indescribable upset
Monarchs’ win over first-place Southern Miss leaves Jones ‘speechless’
NORFOLK — Jeff Jones could have used a thesaurus Wednesday night.
First, though, a dictionary might have better served the Old Dominion coach. After perhaps the most stunning moment of the season to date, words just wouldn’t come.
Mekhi Long scored 20 points and the Monarchs hit critical shots just when they needed them in a thrilling 69-64 upset of firstplace Southern Miss at Chartway Arena.
The victory was the fifth in six games for ODU (18-11, 10-7 Sun Belt), which made 8 of 10 free throws in the final 1:23 to seal the win.
“I was speechless after the game,” Jones said. “I couldn’t really find the words. I’m wearing ‘proud’ out, and I’m trying to find another one.”
The Monarchs overcame a seven-point deficit in the final seven minutes to stun Southern Miss (24-6, 13-4) with help from many.
A quick 9-0 run — with points from four players — capped by Dericko Williams’ layup gave ODU a 61-59 lead with just over three minutes left.
With his team trailing 66-63, the Golden Eagles’ Donovan Ivory had an open look at a 3-pointer from the left wing. He failed to draw iron, and all the visitors could do was foul.
The vocal crowd of 5,428 hit a crescendo as time ran out.
ODU might be many things, but if it was ever a secret in the Sun Belt, it’s not anymore.
“I think it’s just going to show people that we’re really coming to play every game,” said Monarchs guard Chaunce Jenkins, who scored 16 points on a gimpy ankle.
“We go into every game with confidence to win.”
Jenkins wasn’t the only ODU player hobbled. Long played on a sore knee and guard Imo Essien missed the game with a concussion.
Add in the loss of forward Ben Stanley to a season-ending knee injury last week, and it’s easy to see why few gave the Monarchs much of a chance against the league’s most dominant team.
Overcoming the adversity has become a source of pride.
“It means we’ve got a team full of dogs, to be honest,” Long said. “I really don’t think no team in the Sun Belt has been through what we’ve been through on the court and off the court.”
The versatile Long grabbed 11 rebounds to turn in his 11th double-double of the season.
Felipe Haase scored 16 points for the Golden Eagles, who shot 33.3% and used crisp perimeter passing to get open looks. They made 10 of 31 from 3-point range.
ODU shot 41.5% and made 5 of 19 from long range. None was bigger than Long’s 3 from the left wing to spark the decisive late spurt.
ODU shot 45% in the first half, taking what could have been a much larger 34-32 lead into halftime.
The Monarchs twice built 11-point first-half leads, the second one at 31-20 with just more than three minutes left. But Southern Miss closed the half on a 10-2 run to get back into it.
When the Monarchs first gathered before the season, many of them had never even met. Long and reserve guard P.J. Gill took it upon themselves to not only get the players together often to generate team chemistry, but to lead by example.
Jones deflected any credit for building the team.
“Everybody talks about leaders,” he said. “If you’ve got people that don’t want to follow, I don’t care how good a leader you are. So these guys bought in. They didn’t just buy in to me; they bought in to Mekhi and P.J.
“As a coach, this is what you want to see. You want the group to come together and be better than the sum of its parts. And I think that’s exactly what’s happening.”