Box Score THE BASICS:

RESULT: Hartford 67, Saint Peter's 66
LOCATION: Yanitelli Center (Jersey City, N.J.)
ATTENDANCE: 652
RECORDS: St. Peter's (1-1); Hartford (1-2)

THE LEAD:
Justin Graham drilled a go-ahead three-pointer with two seconds remaining to lift the Hartford men's basketball team to a 67-66 victory over St. Peter's on Thursday night. Graham netted 22 points to lead four players in double figures for the Hawks, who were playing their fourth road game in six days to start the season.
 
George Blagojevic had a strong outing for the Hawks with 12 points, five rebounds, two assists, two blocks and a steal in the victory, while Pancake Thomas and John Carroll each posted 10 points. Chazz Patterson had 16 points, 14 in the first half, while Quadir Welton had 12 points and 11 boards for St. Peter's in the loss.

FIRST HALF:
The Peacocks jumped out to an early 7-3 lead with the only Hawks basket a Thomas three, but Hartford rallied to cut the advantage down to one. A pair of buckets by Graham and a three-point play from Carroll keyed the rally that made the score 11-10 in favor of the home team.
 
But St. Peter's embarked on a 10-1 run to push the lead to 21-11. The Hawks traded points to a 23-13 score, then potted the next five points on a Blagojevic jumper and a three-ball from Taylor Dyson. But Saint Peter's countered and slowly added to the edge, pushing it to 12 at 40-28 in the closing minutes. The Hawks locked down defensively and Graham delivered the final three points of the half to make it 40-31 going to the locker room.

SECOND HALF:
Graham got the Hawks going right out of the locker room as well, drilling a three to cut the lead to six points. From that point, the visitors slowly chipped away at the advantage, getting it to four on a Blagojevic turnaround jumper off the glass to make it 44-40. But the Peacocks were able to push the lead to eight on an Elias Desport jumper that made it 52-44 with 9:25 left.
 
The Hawks then caught fire from the outside, as Blagojevic, Cooper, Blagojevic again, and Ross hit four-straight threes for a quick-hit 12-0 run that put Hartford ahead 56-52. Saint Peter's was undaunted, though, slowly chipping away and eventually taking the lead, 60-58 with 2:36 to play.
 
The teams traded points to a 62-61 SPU lead, then Cooper grabbed a huge defensive rebound and Graham delivered a three-ball to put the Hawks ahead 64-62. But SPU got a layup to tie things up, and two free throws with 14.2 on the clock to set up Graham's heroics. After the junior drilled his three from the top of the key, the Peacocks were unable to get off a last-second heave and the Hawks emerged victorious.

INSIDE THE NUMBERS:
• Hartford shot 51.9 percent and 50 percent from beyond the three-point arc after the break after shooting 39.3 percent overall and just 2-for-6 from downtown in the first.

• On the other side, the Hawks held SPU to 29 percent after the break and 0-for-7 from three. The Peacocks were 6-for-11 from range in the first half.

• Graham's 22 points were a career high, as were Blagojevic's two blocks.
 
• This marks the second time in a row that the Hawks have beaten St. Peter's by a single point. Hartford won 51-50 in Chase Arena at Reich Family Pavilion last year.
 
• Dougal Weir provided a strong 11 minutes with Blagojevic and Carroll in foul trouble, as he grabbed three defensive rebounds and provided a presence in the post.

UP NEXT:
Hartford returns home for its first regular-season game in Chase Arena at Reich Family Pavilion on Tuesday, Nov. 24, at 7 p.m. against Niagara.