Calvin’s late 3-pointer lifts Wright State to fourth straight win

And an opponent’s shoe, of all things, played a part Saturday afternoon.

The Raiders had rallied from a six-point deficit, the score was tied and the play in motion was for leading scorer Tanner Holden. Trey Calvin had the ball at the top of the key when the Green Bay player guarding him lost his shoe and fell to the floor.

So Calvin sized up the suddenly wide-open shot he had and broke the tie with a 3-pointer with 19.5 seconds left. Green Bay was unable to score again, and the Raiders won 72-69 at the Nutter Center.

“You make someone fall, you’ve got to shoot it for sure,” said Calvin, who had 13 points and four assists. “It’s probably the biggest shot I’ve ever made, especially in a college game. I’ve probably had two or three game-winners my whole life.”

Tim Finke wasn’t surprised his teammate made the shot.

“There’s never been a doubt with him,” Finke said. “We always see him in here working all the time, getting so many shots up. So when he shoots it, I always think it’s going in.”

Calvin’s shot was an emotional exclamation point on an emotional week. Head coach Scott Nagy and four players had to quarantine from the team because of COVID-19 protocols. That left Sargent in charge. He played for Nagy at South Dakota State and came to Wright State with Nagy six years ago.

“As an assistant coach you’ve got all the answers most of the time, but you just have no idea,” Sargent said. “And now I have just a little idea.”

The emotions, Sargent said, were the hardest aspect to manage. The team was emotional and energized to win for Nagy on Thursday against Milwaukee. They accomplished that with Sargent at the helm, but to come back two days later and be as emotionally ready was difficult. It showed in the second half when an early 43-32 lead evaporated.

“Coach has done it for 27 years and he’s beared this burden of pressure and expectation and always having to emotionally steer the ship,” Sargent said. “And the thing I learned today was that this was the hardest task. That’s where I think he’s one of the best in the country.”

Grant Basile fouled with 2:45 left after scoring 18 points, and a young Green Bay (2-11, 1-3) team made two free throws for a 68-62 lead.

“We just splintered a little bit,” Finke said of the second-half slump. “Defensively we weren’t super great and offensively we had some careless turnovers. But somehow, some way we pulled it together.”

The Raiders rallied to the lead on two Calvin free throws and five points by Holden. The Phoenix tied the score 69-69 on a free throw with 52 seconds left before Calvin hit the winner.

“It’s a huge win,” Holden said. “We had to stick together as a team.”

Holden scored 22 points and surpassed 1,000 for his career. The 6-foot-6 junior guard is a matchup issue in the league and is averaging over 19 points a game and has scored 20 points or more eight times. He was projected as a second-teamer on the preseason all-league team.

“He’s been an all-league guy,” Finke said. “He’s confident, he takes it all the time to the rim, stepping out and shooting and guarding really well. He’s just a super big threat for everybody that we play.”

Holden smiled and added: “And I’ve got a bunch of all-league guys beside me for sure.”

THURSDAY’S GAME

UIC at Wright State, 7 p.m., ESPN+, 103.9