Box Score      NEW ORLEANS — David Manning scored 22 of his 30 points in the second half Saturday to rally Dillard in a 72-65 Gulf Coast Athletic Conference men's basketball victory over Xavier University of Louisiana in the Bleu Devil Classic at Lakefront Arena.
     Manning's 3-pointer from the top of the key with 2:45 remaining — there were two seconds left on the shot clock — put the Blue Devils (11-17 overall, 8-10 GCAC) ahead to stay at 63-60. Manning then went 4-of-4 from the line in Dillard's next two possessions, the last two to give the Blue Devils a 67-61 lead with 1:38 remaining.
     Xavier (19-11, 11-7) cut the lead to 67-64 on Olumide Olafioye's 3-pointer with 1:20 remaining, then Olafioye missed another 3-pointer which would have tied the score with 31 seconds remaining.
     Xavier led 33-25 at halftime, lost the lead midway through the second half, then reclaimed it by making three consecutive 3-pointers — two by Olafioye and the other by Devin Andrew — to grab a 54-48 lead with 7:12 remaining.
     Olafioye scored a season-high 25 points for Xavier, which closed the regular season with two consecutive defeats to drop to the No. 5 seed for next week's conference tournament. Xavier entered Thursday's games in sole possession of second place and needing one victory to secure a home quarterfinal game. Instead Xavier will travel to No. 4 seed Spring Hill for a 7 p.m. Thursday matchup.
     Autrail Manning, no relation to David, added 12 points for Dillard.
     Kelechi Okoroha had 14 points and eight rebounds for Xavier, and Shaun Dumas and Andrew scored 10 points apiece. Dumas had seven assists but also committed seven turnovers.
     Dillard committed five turnovers, 10 fewer than Xavier, and outscored the Gold Rush 22-14 in free throws. David Manning was 14-of-15 from the line.
     Attendance was 1,500 for the doubleheader, which matched the men's and women's teams of the longtime GCAC, city and HBCU rivals. Dillard won the women's game 49-48.
     Dillard snapped a four-game losing streak and ended a seven-game losing streak against Xavier, which leads the series 70-47. Dillard will be the seventh seed in the conference tournament and play host to No. 10 seed SUNO in the opening round at 7 p.m. Tuesday.