SALEM, Va. --- Matt Crizer (Covington, VA, Alleghany)connected on five of the six three-pointers that left his hands on Saturday afternoon, including the eventual game-winner with 51-seconds to play as Roanoke College opened the season with a 73-72 come-from-behind victory over Christopher Newport University in the Bast Center. The opener for both programs, the Maroons move to 1-0 on the season while the Captains fall to 0-1.

Crizer tallied a career-high 21 points, including the final five of the contest for Roanoke. He notched a pair of free throws to tie the game at 70-70 with 3:35 to play to complete the Maroons comeback from a 16-point deficit earlier in the half. CNU's Conley Taylor dropped in a lay-up to put the Captains back on top on their next possession.

Missed shots and turnovers dotted the next few minutes, leading to a Roanoke timeout with 1:07 to play. After the chat, Crizer connected from long-distance on the right wing to give Roanoke its first lead since the first half.

Christopher Newport had two more chances beginning at the 0:19 mark. Guard Paul Going lost control of the ball along the CNU bench, triggering a scrum for possession that resulted in a Captains' timeout with 0:03 showing on the clock. The in-bounds was lobbed for Taylor at the rim. He found iron with his aerial attempt, but it fell to the ground, went off a Maroon and went out of bounds with 0.2 seconds to play.

With so few ticks remaining on the clock, a catch-and-shoot was the only alternative for CNU. The attempt never occurred as six-foot nine-inch center, Papa Fall, tipped the in-bounds pass to start the clock and end the contest.

Crizer's 21 points on 5-of-8 shooting led three Maroons in double figures. He also was 6-of-8 from the line with five rebounds. Kendrick Chittock (Auburn, OH, University School)dropped in 11 points to go with six boards, and Logan Singleton (Roanoke, VA, Hidden Valley)tallied 10 markers, including 4-of-4 from the stripe, with four rebounds. Parrish Walker (Greensboro, NC, Dudley)added eight points, and Michael McGeough (Danville, VA, George Washington)put together a solid effort with five points, six rebounds, five assists and five steals.

Mike Green led CNU with 22 points before fouling out. He also had six boards. Taylor finished with 17 points, and Going chimed in with 15 points on 4-of-5 shooting from deep. Center Mark Blasingame notched a game-high 18 rebounds (five offensive) to go with nine points and five blocked shots.

Crizer put his stamp on the game early with his first three-pointer giving RC a 7-4 lead at the 17:34 mark. A McGeough three-ball and two jumpers from Chittock helped the Maroons to their biggest lead of the game at 14-9 with 14:34 to go in the opening half.

CNU quickly overtook Roanoke with a pair of three's from Going for a 15-14 lead. The scoring pace became uneven over the next few minutes with Roanoke pushing back ahead, 22-21, following a jumper by Fall with 10:28 on the clock.

The lead traded hands several times over the remainder of the half, although CNU did enjoy a six-point lead with 4:38 to play. Roanoke battled back to enjoy leads of 35-34 and 37-36, but that latter advantage would be its last until Crizer's winner. The Captains closed the half on a 12-6 run to go into the half on top, 48-42. The halftime deficit would have been larger were it not for Walker's 35-foot make at the first half buzzer.

Christopher Newport opened the second half with a flourish as it put together a 15-5 run to enjoy a 63-47 lead with 14:57 to play. A free throw by Corey Poindexter and a jumper from Kwasi Amponsah (Woodbridge, VA, Garfield)started the comeback for Roanoke. The Maroons went on a 14-2 run to pull to within four at 67-63 before Taylor canned a three for a 70-63 lead with 5:20 to play.

Crizer responded immediately for Roanoke, hitting his fourth triple of the contest. Fall's put-back of a Chittock miss brought RC within a bucket, or in this case, a pair of free throws by Crizer to tie the game 70-70 and set up the final few minutes of play.