Nathan Minessale scored five of his 14 points in the final 36 seconds to help St. Thomas rally for a 79-76 victory over Denver on Saturday at Schoenecker Arena.
The Tommies (19-7, 9-2 Summit) remain in second place in the Summit League standings, one game behind Omaha. Omaha (16-10, 10-1) defeated North Dakota State 84-74 in Omaha on Saturday.
Drake Dobbs led St. Thomas in scoring with 21 points.
The Tommies trailed by seven points during the first half but rallied to take a 38-37 lead at halftime.
Denver opened the second half with an 8-0 run to take a 45-38 lead. The Pioneers led by six points, 66-60, with six minutes remaining.
The Tommies tied the game 70-70 on Miles Barnstable’s three-pointer with three minutes left. The Pioneers regained the lead 72-70 before a basket by the Tommies' Kendall Blue tied it with two minutes remaining.
Dobbs scored with one minute remaining to give the Tommies a 74-72 lead, their first lead of the second half.
After the Pioneers tied it with 44 seconds remaining, Minessale’s dunk with 36 seconds remaining gave the Tommies the lead again.