Indy native Dre Davis makes winning-basket against ISU
INDIANAPOLIS – D’Andre Davis knew what was coming as soon as his son, Seton Hall senior Dre Davis, took possession. The former Warren Central coach had seen Dre execute the maneuver several times as a high schooler, both at Lawrence Central where D’Andre was on staff as an assistant and on the AAU circuit.
“He did that same thing to Pike,” D’Andre said during a phone interview Friday from Dubai, where he and his wife live-streamed Thursday’s NIT championship game between the Pirates and Indiana State.
Dre took a handoff from Kadary Richmond, spun through a trio of Sycamores and laid in the go-ahead basket with 16 seconds remaining to complete a 9-0 run and lift Seton Hall to a stunning 7977 victory at Hinkle Fieldhouse.
A heroic moment by the hometown kid.
“We were just blessed to see it happen,” D’Andre said, “but we had no doubt he could do it.”
‘It was just a broken play,” Dre explained. “(Richmond) created an angle for me to get downhill and just put me in position to be able to get a good look at the rim. … I am blessed, man, pleased beyond measure to be able to do this at the home crib. Happy for my guys. Proud of my team to fight tooth-andnail to the very end.”
D’Andre and Carlonda’s absence from Hinkle Fieldhouse was the result of unfortunate timing, more than anything else. D’Andre had planned a trip to Dubai for his wife’s birthday, and it was too late to cancel by the time Seton Hall accepted an NIT bid and “all of this happened.”
The eight-hour difference between Dubai and the Eastern time zone made for some unique challenges (Thursday’s game tipped off around 3 a.m. Dubai time), but Dre’s parents managed to catch all but two of his games, with D’Andre connecting remotely to his work station so they could watch from their hotel room.
“We had to figure it out. My wife wouldn’t allow me to not watch,” D’Andre said. “We were going to do whatever we had to do in order to see Dre. She was not going to have (us miss) it.”
Back home, Dre had over 50 family members and friends in the stands, with even more support pouring in from the Lawrence Central community. He logged 19 points, nine rebounds, four assists and two blocks in a semifinal rout of Georgia on Tuesday, then recorded 18 points, an assist and three blocks over 40 minutes vs. Indiana State.
“Indy was great for me. To be able to come home, win two big games and a national championship — it was a great week,” Dre said. “I’m extremely blessed and extremely happy for my guys, our team and Seton Hall University as a whole.”
The Pirates were backed into a corner entering the final media timeout with an Isaiah Swope 3-pointer giving the Sycamores a seven-point lead with less than three minutes remaining. Carlonda was unsure if the Pirates would be able to rally — “Man, it’s going to be tough for us to fight back and win it,” she told her husband — but D’Andre’s confidence never wavered. He had spoken with a few Seton Hall players before leaving for Dubai, and they pledged to “go back and win this for Dre.”
“I knew if they had that in their minds, they were going to keep fighting,” D’Andre said. “I’ve watched them come back and win games. They fought all season. I said, ‘This game is not over.’ … I had a feeling it would all work out.”
Seton Hall roared back out of the timeout with a basket by Richmond and five straight points by Al-Amir Dawes knotting the score at 77 with 1:05 remaining.
The Pirates ran down the shot clock before Dre cracked the defense, spinning through for the eventual gamewinner.
“We wound up switching, then (Davis) drove it and spun to create the separation,” Indiana State coach Josh Schertz said. “He made a good move and got it off the glass. … That was a good player making a good play to win the game.”
As the confetti settled on the Hinkle Fieldhouse hardwood and Seton Hall headed off to continue celebrating in the locker room, Dre was able to connect with his parents. “We told him that him winning (the championship) made our vacation that much more enjoyable,” D’Andre said.
“We’re just super excited, especially with the way Dre’s relationship with (coach Shaheen Holloway) has grown. He’s started to really trust him and put him in good situations,” D’Andre continued. “We as parents couldn’t be much more proud of Dre and thankful for what Shah has done to help him.”