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It marks the first NCAA Tournament victory for Mount St. Mary’s since a 2008 play-in win in Dayton.
“I was just trying to be positive for our team and bring the energy I needed,” Robinson said. “Eli (Long) went down with two fouls (in the first half) and I made it any way I could.”
New Orleans (20-12) worked its way back from an 11-point deficit to take its first lead since the opening five minutes, making it 64-63 with 1:48 left after tying it up twice before that, but Robinson responded moments later with a crucial jumper to put the Mountaineers (20-15) ahead again, and they were able to hold on to the finish.
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The Privateers, making their first tournament appearance since 1996, had one last chance for the win after Nate Frye made a pair of free throws for the final points with 34 seconds left. The Mount was able to work down the shot clock before Robinson missed, but Erik Thomas grabbed the rebound for New Orleans, which called timeout with three seconds left.
However, Chris Wray came up with steal on the in-bounds play with a boisterous crowd on its feet for the final possession and the Mount threw up a long shot at the buzzer in celebration.
“What an amazing game,” Mount St. Mary’s coach Jamion Christian said. “A lot of fun out there. Two teams that won their league, that won their league tournament, just love competing. When you get games like that in the month of March, it always has a great outcome.”
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Mount St. Mary’s had gotten off to a slow start, trailing 10-5 just over four minutes into the game, but used a 10-0 run to pull ahead and eventually built a 30-19 lead late in the half for the largest cushion of the game.
New Orleans responded to the Mount’s eight straight points by closing out the half with a 10-2 run to make it a three-point game at the break while holding Mountaineers top scorer Elijah Long scoreless. The Privateers’ tip-in at the buzzer was waived off, leaving it a 32-29 game, and they kept the second half close throughout.
Nate Frye led the Privateers with 18 points, all but one in the second half, and Thomas and Travin Thibodeaux added 12 and 11 points respectively. Freshman Miles Wilson joined Robinson in double figures, finishing with 17 points and 11 rebounds for the Mount.
What's next: Mount St. Mary's heads to Buffalo, where it faces top-seeded Villanova (31-3) on Thursday.
Pivotal play: Wilson grabbed his 11th rebound of the game – a career high – and drew a foul with 1:07 left shortly after Robinson put the Mount back up for good. New Orleans had momentum at that point but the three-point hole was too much to overcome so late.
Unsung hero: Alexander Greg finished with nine points in just 18 minutes while playing in foul trouble. Five of those came in the last nine minutes, including a 3-pointer after New Orleans tied the game.
Spotlight stat: Mount St. Mary's usual leading scorer Elijah Long finished with just six points and didn't get his first basket until 8:28 left in game. He was limited to 10 minutes in the first half with two personal fouls.
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