The St. John’s Edge received a pair of clutch free throws from Glen Davis with five seconds left on the clock to secure a 112-111 win over the KW Titans in a thrilling National Basketball League of Canada playoff game Monday night at Mile One Centre.
The win gives the Edge a 2-0 lead on the Titans in the best-of-seven Central Division final heading to Kitchener, Ont. for Games 3 and 4 Friday and Sunday, and possibly Game 5 next Tuesday.
St. John’s opened the series Saturday night with a 101-94 win.
While the Edge have a comfortable two-game lead in the series, the truth of the matter is they were lucky to pull this one out Monday in front of 4,327 fans.
Despite leading by 20 points, 102-82, with 5:43 left in regulation time, the Edge needed last-second heroics to register the win.
Up 58-44 at the half and 83-69 with the final 12 minutes of play in the fourth quarter, the visiting Titans went on a 14-point run late in the game, 12 of those coming on three-point shots, to make it 102-96.
With just under a minute left, the Titans came to within six points of the Edge on an Ashton Smith three-pointer, and Kitchener picked away, eventually taking its first lead since the first quarter, 111-110, on a Smith trey with nine ticks left on the clock.
But with five seconds remaining, Flen Whitfield fouled, sending Davis to the line and he was clutch with two free throws, sending the 4,327 hometown faithful home happy.
It was a testy affair, with the Titans nabbed for three technical fouls and the Edge one, by Carl English.
English again led the Edge with 22 points. Davis had 18, Murphy Burnatowski with 17 and Lee with 15.
Smith scored 25 points for the Titans.
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