There will be a new regional champion this March. A pair of terrific NCAA regional semifinals comprised the Sunday schedule, and we begin the recap with an instant classic between two New England rivals played in Philadelphia:
STONEHILL 75 SOUTHERN NEW HAMPSHIRE 74 (OT)
Carter Smith’s driving lay-up with five seconds to play in overtime proved the game-winner as Stonehill won a scintillating thriller vs. defending regional champion Southern New Hampshire at Holy Family's Campus Center. The game was defined by three distinct acts. In the first half, a 16-0 run transformed a 17-16 deficit into a 32-17 lead as SNHU kept the Skyhawks without a basket for nearly nine minutes and 26% overall shooting en route to a 37-21 halftime cushion. Rodney Sanders tallied 17 of his 29 points during the period, then opened the second half with a hoop that stretched the spread to a game-high 18-points. Stonehill – which was paced by Adam Bramanti’s 21-point effort (8-12 FG, 4-8 from deep) – dominated the second act. Trailing 47-34 with 13-and-a-half minutes perhaps left in their season, the Skyhawks orchestrated a 25-9 upswing, surging in front 59-56 on a Ryan Logan basket with 3:52 remaining. The game remained air-tight the rest of the way with no more than a three-point separation over the final 11:15 overall. A Sanders lay-up with 27 seconds to go put the Penmen on top 65-63, but Smith countered with a reverse lay-up eight seconds later to draw even. And when Chris Walters’ baseline jumper fell short at the buzzer, it was on to the bonus round. The five-minute overtime was a rollercoaster ride that featured zero fouls and eight field goals, each of which provided lead changes (there were 13 in the game, along with six ties). A tip-in by Pierce Cumpstone (13 points, 11 rebounds) at the 1:16 stage put Stonehill on top 70-69 before a Sanders lay-up 12 seconds later flipped the see-saw. A Cumpstone left-corner 3-pointer with 41 seconds on the clock gave his team a 73-71 upper hand before B.J. Cardarelli (11 points, seven boards in his final game) answered with a corner triple of his own at the 15-second mark, affording SNHU its last lead at 74-73 and setting up Smith’s decisive lay-in. Sanders dribbled upcourt and attempted a well-defended three from the right wing for the win, but it bounded off the back rim, ending his team’s six-game win streak in heartbreaking fashion. Smith finished with 18 points and four assists for teh winners, while Logan nearly compiled a triple-double with 12 points, nine rebounds and nine helpers. Sanders (four assists) closed out his brilliant career as the Penmen’s fifth all-time leading scorer with 1,945 points, while midseason pick-up Jerome Harris contributed 11 points (3-5 from long range) in a reserve role. Stonehill – which is bidding for its third regional championship – was slightly outshot (44%-43%) and outrebounded (44-38) but committed only four turnovers in 45 minutes to SNHU’s 11, leading to a 10-2 boon in mistake points. The loss was Southern New Hampshire’s fifth since January in which the team squandered a second-half lead of at least 18 points… and the second such outing vs. the Skyhawks within the span of three weekends. The three meetings between these two clubs this season were decided by a combined six points.
ST. ANSELM 77 ST. THOMAS AQUINAS 73
For the third straight season, and eighth time in the last 13 years, it will be an All-Northeast-10 championship game for the right to represent the East Region at the NCAA’s Elite-8. That scenario was assured in the first semifinal as St. Anselm pulled out a heart-stopping victory over St. Thomas Aquinas, snapping its national-best and program NCAA-era record 21-game winning streak as a result. Playing without ECC Player of the Year Justin Reyes due to his negligible role in a brawl following STAC’s first-ever NCAA Tournament victory one day earlier, the Spartans gave the Hawks all they could handle in a game that featured eight lead changes, 14 ties and, amazingly, no margin larger than six the entire night. St. A’s initiated the game’s only true run – a 13-3 second-half spree that reversed a 64-60 deficit and established a 73-67 advantage after two Mike McCahey free throws with 2:53 to play. The senior sharpshooter – who busted out for 29 points and seven rebounds – collected nine of the 13 points during the charge, but the Spartans rattled off six of the next seven points, inching within 74-73 after a fast-break lay-up by Chaz Watler with 38 ticks left. Tim Guers was fouled and sank both of his freebies with 10 seconds to go, and St. Thomas had a chance to equalize. Watler – who totaled 27 points and six boards – dribbled into the frontcourt and missed a contested three. Guers grabbed the rebound and was fouled with 2.7 seconds remaining, and after missing his first attempt, the NE-10 Freshman of the Year calmly sank the second, wrapping up a well-rounded 16-point, nine-rebound, five-assist performance and sending the Hawks to their second Sweet 16 in three years. Harrison Taggart overcame some foul trouble with 15 points (3-4 from beyond the arc) and five assists for the winners, who dished out more than twice as many assists (20-9) and overcame a 36-32 rebounding disparity. Jonathan Lawton registered 15 points (3-5 from 3) in his third collegiate start for STAC, which also landed Shaq McFarlan in double figures with 10. The Spartans accounted for 15 of the game’s 20 second-chance points.
TITLE TILT
Tuesday’s championship game will be the third meeting of the season between the Hawks and Skyhawks with St. Anselm having swept the regular-season series. The game will tip off at 7:00 pm at the Campus Center in Northeast Philly with Stonehill is looking for its third regional crown in 11 seasons and St. A’s seeking its first Elite-8 appearance since 2000.