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Navy men’s basketball stunned by Boston U on buzzer-beater in Patriot League semifinal

Navy men’s basketball stunned by Boston U on buzzer-beater in Patriot League semifinal
March 8, 2026

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Navy men’s basketball stunned by Boston U on buzzer-beater in Patriot League semifinal

Heartbreak came Sunday for Navy men’s basketball.

But for Boston University, a thrilling final three seconds resulted in pure elation and a stunning upset. For host and top-seeded Navy, it was a sense of utter disbelief.

And it came with a bit of controversy in Annapolis.

Freshman guard Chance Gladden drained a 3-pointer from 35 feet away as the buzzer sounded and the No. 4 seed Terriers stunned the Midshipmen, 73-72, in the semifinals of the Patriot League Tournament.

In the span of three seconds, the partisan crowd of 1,722 at Alumni Hall went from celebration mode to one of mourning.

Senior point guard Austin Benigni had given Navy a two-point lead with 4.2 seconds remaining, driving the length of the court for a layup. That is when the first of apparently two clock errors occurred, as it wasn’t stopped as soon as Benigni’s basket went in and instead at 3.6 seconds.

Boston immediately inbounded the ball to Gladden and the clock then did not start for approximately a second. Gladden hurriedly dribbled the ball upcourt, went behind the back to avoid a steal attempt by Navy forward Donovan Draper then rose up and launched the triple that was on target from the moment it came out of his hands.

WHAT. A. FINISH.

CHANCE GLADDEN AT THE BUZZER SENDS @TERRIERMBB TO THE PATRIOT LEAGUE TITLE GAME.

This is March! pic.twitter.com/Dqf431OKow

— CBS Sports College Basketball (@CBSSportsCBB) March 8, 2026

“There was three seconds left, so I knew I had to run as fast as I could and try to get a good shot up,” Gladden said. “I went behind the back then let it go and it felt so good in the moment. I just knew it was in. Hitting the game-winner is just a surreal feeling.”

Navy first-year coach Jon Perry was disappointed his players did not do a better job of immediately turning their attention to defense after Benigni’s layup.

“When good things happen, you can’t just celebrate, you have to continue to play the game,” he said. “To their credit, they got the ball to Chance and we lost him. He had a good look from 35 [feet] and it looked good when it was coming off his hands.”

Gladden took over the game in the second half, scoring 22 of his game-high 26 points in the final 13:03. The Patriot League All-Rookie team selection made 7 of 8 3-pointers and also dished off four assists.

“Chance Gladden is a really good player, and when the game was on the line, he stepped up and made basket after basket after basket,” Perry said. “You don’t ever want to be on the losing end of one of those shots. It’s not easy to take. That’s March.”

Show Caption1 of 43Boston University Terriers celebrate a three point basket made by guard Chance Gladden #2 with less than a second left to give them the win. The visiting Boston University Terriers defeat the Navy Midshipmen, 73-72, to win a Patriot League Men’s Basketball Championship semifinal game Sunday at Alumni Hall in Annapolis. (Paul W. Gillespie/Staff)Expand

Junior guard Michael McNair scored 22 points and grabbed seven rebounds for Boston University (17-16), which will play at Lehigh (17-16) in Wednesday night’s championship game. Sophomore center Ben Defty had 14 points and seven rebounds for the Terriers, who have won nine of their past 10 games.

Senior center Aidan Kehoe posted his 19th double-double of the season with 26 points and 12 rebounds for Navy (26-7), which suffered its first conference loss at home this season. Benigni scored 17 points but made just 7 of 24 field goals for the Midshipmen, who saw their 14-game winning streak end.

Navy had been hoping to reach the Patriot League Tournament title tilt for the third time since 2022. In a historic season in which the Midshipmen became just the second conference program to post a 17-1 regular-season record, they fell short of the ultimate goal of reaching the NCAA Tournament for the first time since 1989.

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McNair scored 17 points on the strength of four 3-pointers as Boston University took a 36-35 halftime lead. The first team All-Patriot League pick got hot down the stretch and drained three triples in the final 2:37, with the last putting the Terriers ahead for the first time.

Defty had 12 points for Boston University, which shot 61% from the field in the first half, making 5 of 10 from 3-point range.

Kehoe scored 11 points for Navy, which led for nearly 18 of the 20 minutes. Benigni netted nine points for the Midshipmen, who led by as much as nine at the 13:34 mark.

This article will be updated. Have a news tip? Contact Bill Wagner at bwagner@capgaznews.com, 443-534-0102 and x.com/@BWagner_CapGaz.

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