They weren’t initially on the schedule for today, but the two division leaders in the Northeast-10 both won home games on Presidents’ Day… one a conference game and the other a crossover clash between first-place teams.
SOUTHERN CONNECTICUT 92 MERRIMACK 85
Make it seven straight victories, and 20 on the campaign, for the defending regional champions. Luke Houston racked up 28 points and 11 rebounds to lead five in double figures as Southern Connecticut rallied to knock off Merrimack at Moore Field House in a game that had been twice postponed due to bad weather. In a game featuring two of the top offensive clubs in the region, the Owls trailed for the majority of the game, including by 10 points twice in the second half before getting off the mat. A 21-6 power run – bookended by Michael Mallory 3-pointers and featuring a go-ahead 3-point play by Houston – transformed a 73-66 deficit at the 9:20 mark into an 87-79 advantage with 2:23 to play. The Warriors – who received another terrific effort from Gelvis Solano – never came closer than five points down the stretch. The junior guard and NE-10 scoring leader cranked out 23 of his 33 points before intermission and pulled down seven rebounds while playing all 40 minutes, though oddly, he shot better from beyond the arc (7-12) than inside of it (4-12). Mallory (six rebounds, two blocked shots off the bench) and Tylon Smith (five assists) each recorded 18 points for Southern, which also landed Desmond Williams (16 points, 11 rebounds) and Deshawn Murphy (10 points) in double figures. JT Strickland turned in a 20-point performance for Merrimack, drilling both of his 3-point attempts for the second time in three days. James Kennedy notched a double-double in defeat with 14 points and 10 rebounds. Both teams shot 44% from the floor, and the visitors were more effective from long range (12-24 to 8-24) but the Owls capitalized at the foul line (22-27 to 13-16) and scored four times as often off turnovers (24-6) in expanding their divisional lead to a full game over idle American International (those two close out the season with each other in Springfield). This marks the seventh 20-win season in program history and second back-to-back campaign of 20+ wins (1981-82 and 1982-83). The loss was a costly one for the Warriors, who now trail Bentley by two full games for the final playoff berth in the Northeast Division with three games left.
SOUTHERN NEW HAMPSHIRE 67 ST. THOMAS AQUINAS 43
In a game that was a late addition to the schedule thanks to both teams having non-conference games canceled as a result of snowstorms (and a curious, poor-faith effort by Lincoln University, which made up excuses to bail out on a return game), Southern New Hampshire slaughtered East Coast Conference co-leader St. Thomas Aquinas in a Manchester matinee for its 10th win in 11 games. Elijah Bonsignore registered twice as many points as the game’s next highest scorer with 20 (7-11 FG) as the Penmen bolted out of the gate with leads of 14-0 and 40-11 before settling on a 42-15 halftime chasm. It got uglier over the first 11 minutes of the final frame as the lead crested at 61-27 before STAC outscored its hosts 16-6 over the final 9:08 to make the final score a little more respectable. Bonsignore added six rebounds to his stat line, while Devin Gilligan managed 10 points off the bench for the victors, who were the superior shooters (46%-32%), especially from long distance (10-26 to 2-9). SNHU also claimed 14 of the game’s 18 assists and hammered their guests 25-2 off turnovers. Sam Berlin’s nine points and eight rebounds were tops on the Spartans’ scorecard as the Penmen have not allowed a double-figure scorer in either of their last two games (Ryan Logan netted nine at Stonehill on Saturday). As small consolation, Aquinas won the glass (35-31) but fell to 0-4 vs. the NE-10 this year.
POLL POSITION
The new D2SIDA regional poll is out and the results are listed below with last week’s position in parentheses. On Wednesday, the first official regional rankings come out and promise to look quite a bit different based on NCAA criteria. In between then and now, the national polls will be released tomorrow.
1. University of the Sciences (1)
2. Southern Connecticut (2)
3. American International (3)
4. Southern New Hampshire (4)
5. Bridgeport (8)
6. St. Anselm (7)
7. Holy Family (5)
T8. St. Michael’s (6)
T8. St. Thomas Aquinas (9)
10. Stonehill (T10)
Receiving Votes: Daemen, Philadelphia
Dropped Out: Daemen