BUFFALO, NY - Jay Scarbrough used a ball screen, split two defenders in the lane before hitting the game winning shot while being fouled with 2.5 seconds left to lift the Villa Maria Vikings to an 80-78 victory and a Northeastern Intercollegiate Athletics Conference (NIAC) Tournament Championship over the University of Maine at Fort Kent Bengals on Saturday afternoon.

Scarbrough, the tournament Most Valuable Player (MVP), scored 16 points but none two bigger than his final bucket to secure the victory.  He needed just four shots to score 16, knocking down 12-of-15 at the free throw line to add to his total.  Junior DeJaun Owens led Villa with 17 points as five players notched double-figure scoring numbers.  All-Tournament Team member Lonnie Taylor scored 12 points and added five rebounds and four blocks, a day after posting 25 points and 14 rebounds.

With Villa trailing 76-72 with 2:09 left, senior Justin Stokes was left open on the wing and buried just his second made triple of the year to pull Villa within one.  Three straight Scarbrough free throws gave Villa a two-point edge with 37 seconds, but UMFK answered with two free throws of their own by Anthony Knight to tie the game at 78 with 20.7 left. After running some time off the clock on the next possession, Villa went to work with about 12 ticks left and put the ball in Scarbrough's hands.  They were rewarded.  After taking the lead, Villa then tipped the inbounds pass away, allowing the clock to run out.

Villa will now travel to Uniontown, PA where they will be the three-seed in the USCAA National Tournament.  They take on sixth-seeded Penn State Greater Allegheny at 12:00 p.m. on Thursday.