There were no upsets in the ECC on Wednesday, but there was one in the NE10, and that’s where we begin the latest rundown:
PACE 68 FRANKLIN PIERCE 67
Christian White posted a career-high 21 points (5-9 from 3-point range) and handed out six assists to lead Pace past Franklin Pierce in Rindge to snap a five-game slide. A 19-6 first-half burst turned a 17-13 deficit into a 32-23 lead that never dissipated, although the Ravens nearly “stole” the game late. After a Ryan Peterson three gave the Setters a 64-53 advantage with 5:42 to play, the hosts embarked on a 14-4 run to draw within a point after Jordan Lackey’s long-range shot with 43 ticks left. After a stop, Donte Gittens had a good look inside the paint for the win but the shot bounced off the back rim as time expired, consigning Pierce to a fourth straight loss. Evan Gordinier produced 13 points (3-5 from 3) off the bench for Pace, which also landed Peterson (11) and Austin Mofunanya (10 points, eight rebounds) in double figures. Lackey was high man for the Ravens with 18 points and seven boards, followed by Gittens (16 points, nine rebounds, seven assists, four blocked shots), Matt Banton (12 points, six rebounds) and Mike McDevitt (11, 8). The Setters were slightly outshot (40%-38%) and outrebounded (39-37) while also being doubled up at the foul line (14-16 to 7-11) but won the game on the strength of its production beyond the arc (13-28 to 7-29).
SAINT ROSE 90 BENTLEY 83
In the other NE10 match-up, a 32-5 blitz powered Saint Rose past Bentley at Nolan Gym for a sixth straight win and share of first place in the Southwest Division with idle Southern Connecticut. The Golden Knights trailed just once on the night (9-8) when they unleashed their barrage. It began, innocently enough, with a lay-up from Julian Lipinsky (10 points, six rebounds) and by the time the dust had settled, the hosts had shot 17-for-23 from the field (74%) and were on top 40-14 with 7:47 still remaining in the first half. The Falcons clamped down at that point, not allowing another basket in the period while closing out the half on an 18-3 run to pull within 43-32. It was 57-44 nearly eight minutes into the second half, but the visitors attempted a comeback bid, slashing their deficit to four on three occasions, the last instance at 83-79 after a pair of Ryan Richmond free throws with 55 seconds to go. They would never come within a single possession, however, as Saint Rose – the region’s most accurate foul-shooting club – converted seven of nine the rest of the way to keep Bentley at bay. Mical-Ryan Boyd paced five in double digits with 20 points and four assists. He was supported by Tyler Sayre (19 points, six rebounds), Jack Jones (15 points off the bench) and Damon Coleman (12 points, 4-5 FG, five assists, four steals). Richmond led five Falcons in doubles with 20 points (17 after intermission, 4-8 from downtown Albany), followed by Brandon Wheeler (17 points, 6-8 FG), Zach Gilpin (16 points, 6-8 FG, five assists), Matt Turkington (career-best 13 points off the pine, 4-5 FG, 3-4 from 3) and Ferguson Duke (12 points, four assists). Both teams shot it well (CSR 54%, BU 52%), although Bentley was busier from long distance (13-27 to 6-14). Conversely, the Golden Knights dominated in the paint (32-14) and scored nearly twice as often off turnovers (25-13).
ST. THOMAS AQUINAS 82 ROBERTS WESLEYAN 67
The higher-ranked teams won all four ECC contests on Wednesday. In Rochester, Chaz Watler registered 21 points (3-4 from deep) and six rebounds, while Aaron Cust provided a season-high 19 (6-9 FG) off the bench to lead first-place St. Thomas Aquinas past Roberts Wesleyan for its sixth straight triumph. After 11 early lead swaps, a Watler triple triggered STAC’s 18-4 spell over the last 6:06 of the first half that flipped a 23-20 deficit into a 38-27 lead. It was 40-27 nearly a minute into the final frame when the Redhawks initiated an 18-8 run, capped by a Malik Dare lay-up, that pared the deficit down to 48-45 with 12:18 on the clock. A 53-50 contest almost two minutes later, Shaq McFarlan (10 points) scored inside to commence a 12-4 upswing that pushed the margin back to 65-54 at the 6:41 mark, and Roberts came no closer than nine points the remainder of the ballgame, the lead maxing out at 82-64 after a Cust 3-point play in the waning seconds. James Mitchell tossed in 14 points for the Spartans, who won despite being outshot (51%-44%), outrebounded (35-31) and out-assisted (17-11). The major difference was its vaunted full-court press, which was primarily responsible for a 19-8 turnover difference, resulting in a 19-6 scoring edge. St. Thomas also made more threes (9-20 to 6-17) and foul shots (15-18 to 9-18). Dare topped the Redhawks’ scorecard with 17 points on perfect 8-of-8 shooting, while Zack Panebianco contributed 13 points and five assists.
BRIDGEPORT 98 NYIT 77
Twelve of 13 players scored, and five reached twin figures, as Bridgeport pulled away from New York Institute of Technology at Hubbell Gym for its fourth straight victory and a tie for second place with idle District of Columbia. Sam Joseph spearheaded the Purple Knights attack with 23 points (8-10 FG, 3-5 from beyond the arc), eight rebounds and five steals, with solid support coming from Rakim Lesane (16 points in 20 bench minutes), Montana Mayfield (14 in 17), Kyle Benjamin (12 points, seven rebounds, seven blocks) and Carlos DeJesus (10 points, five assists). The hosts trailed by as many as nine in the first half but managed to forge a 70-62 lead inside of the final nine minutes when a Benjamin basket sparked an 18-4 tear that put the game out of reach at 88-66 with 2:37 to play. Jon Feiler racked up 24 points and 13 rebounds for the Bears, while Jeffrey Hayden flirted with a double-double of his own (20, 9). The Purple Knights were the superior shooting team (56%-39%), making 61% of their attempts after halftime, offsetting a 45-34 rebounding disparity (21-9 on the offensive end). The assist-turnover ratios were polar opposites (UB 22/12, NYIT 12/22), resulting in a 40-23 boon in mistake points. Bridgeport also made a killing on the break, 24-4.
QUEENS 89 MERCY 82
The most competitive contest in the circuit came at Westchester Community College, where Queens grinded out a tough road victory against Mercy, handing its hosts a ninth consecutive setback in the process. Trailing 44-37 at intermission, the Knights opened the second period on a 12-1 upswing to pull in front 48-45, and the game remained tight until the final five minutes, with neither side able to post more than seven points of separation to that point. Tyree White amassed 21 points (7-11 FG and FT) and 14 rebounds to lead the way, but Kyheim Chaplin (17 points off the bench) was clutch in crunch time, banging a big trey that made it 76-68 with 4:35 left, and then knocking down a pair of freebies at the 1:43 mark that provided the game’s only double-digit margin: 85-74. The Mavericks – who were fronted by Raphael Jennings' (four assists) and Amir Adkins’ 17-point efforts (the latter in a reserve role) – reeled off seven straight to creep within 85-81 with 38 seconds remaining and then had two long-range shots to trim the deficit to one, but neither would fall, sealing their fate. Malcolm Moore generated 18 points (7-7 FG) and six assists for Queens, which also placed Diego Maldonado in double figures with 13 points (3-4 from 3) as their team outshot the Mavs 67%-39% over the final 20 minutes and 59%-43% for the game. Marko Kozul offered 15 points off the bench and Kelvin Howard 10 for Mercy, which was outworked on the backboards (39-26) but outscored the Knights 20-11 off turnovers to stay close.
DAEMEN 88 LIU POST 66
Jeff Redband busted out for a personal-best 22 points (8-12 FG, 5-8 from deep), including 14 straight during a 39-9 game-opening onslaught that fueled Daemen’s blowout of LIU Post in Buffalo, avenging an early-season overtime loss. The Wildcats were never threatened in this one, although an 18-6 Post flurry over the last eight minutes of the first half narrowed their arrears to 45-27. The visitors would get no closer the rest of the way, though, as the lead mushroomed to 74-42 before all was said and done. Supreme Hannah (4-5 from distance, five assists) and Arif Mehmetaj (two blocks) both pitched in with 18 points for the Cats, who were the more accurate shooters (51%-33%) and were deadly from deep (15-32 to 9-17) while fashioning the stronger assist-turnover line (20/10 to 13/18), leading to a 25-14 edge in mistake points. All those stats negated a 46-30 pounding Daemen endured on the glass, which led to a 17-2 second-chance scoring shortfall that hardly made a difference in the outcome. Greg Dotson chalked up 21 points (3-4 from 3) and 12 rebounds while playing all 40 minutes for the Pioneers, while Jared Hall totaled 13 points and five assists in their team’s fifth straight defeat.