OLEAN, N.Y. — When St. Bonaventure senior Kyle Lofton missed two free throws in the final two seconds of the Bonnies' Atlantic 10 tournament game against Saint Louis, many thought not only was the season done for good, but they may have sent their seniors out in the worst way possible.
Lofton admitted on Tuesday night that he was crying in bed for weeks ever since that moment.
St. Bonaventure entered the NIT tournament after their NCAA tournament hopes were crushed.
After going out west to play Colorado and Oklahoma in the first two rounds, beating both Power 5 schools, St. Bonaventure had its toughest matchup yet with the Virginia Cavaliers on Tuesday night.
Down four in the final frame, Dominick Welch nailed a 3-point shot with less than 30 seconds left. Moments later the Bonnies would get the ball back, and it ended up in the hands of Lofton, who drove to the bucket and was fouled, setting up a déjà vu scenario to their loss to Saint Louis.
This time, although the crowd was even louder, Lofton came in clutch. He nailed both free throws, and the team advanced to the Final Four in Madison Square Garden.
"Knowing that I let my team down in the A-10 tournament, everything came full circle. I prayed for this. I said if I am in this position again, I would hit them, so God is really real," Lofton said.
Bonnies coach Mark Schmidt had praise for Lofton after their win.
“I say it all the time, it’s character that wins the game," Schmidt said. "You know he (Lofton) missed those foul shots at Saint Louis, but he didn’t hang his head, he is a special kid, he is a guy we knew we wanted on the line as the game was going down to the end, he deserved it.
"It was a great victory, I look forward to representing the A-10 in the final four in Madison Square Garden on Tuesday night.”
To add to the roller coaster of emotions, Lofton now gets to play in front of his family in MSG. Lofton grew up less than an hour from the iconic arena in Scotch Plains, N.J.
The Bonnies will now tip off with Xavier on Tuesday night with a chance to advance to the championship game on March 31.
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