The NE10 offered a quartet of games on Tuesday, with the two Southwest Division games favoring the road team and the two Northeast Division games going the way of the hosts:
ADELPHI 107 Le MOYNE 99
Spencer Foley exploded for a career-high 32 points (8-13 FG, 5-7 FG, 11-12 FT), while adding 11 rebounds and five assists as Adelphi shot a sizzling 18-for-27 both inside and outside the arc (67%), temporarily denying Le Moyne the chance to clinch a third straight Southwest Division crown in Syracuse. The Panthers – who trail their former Mideast Collegiate Conference rivals by 2.5 games with five to play – snapped an eight-game losing streak in the series (dating back to December 5, 2015) and seven-game slide at Ted Grant Court dating back to a 65-61 triumph on February 18, 2012. The Dolphins jumped out to a 13-4 lead, and were still in front, 37-34, before their guests used a 14-2 run over the last 3:51 of the half – capped by a Foley trey at the buzzer – to open up a 48-39 advantage. Le Moyne – whose 99 points were its most ever in a loss – came as close as 73-69 on a Ryan Roland triple with 10:25 to play before a Chris Coalmon 3-pointer 22 seconds later sparked a 15-5 run that boosted the gap to 88-74 at the 5:24 mark. That proved too much for the hosts to overcome as they crept within five points three times down the stretch, only to see Adelphi convert 12 straight free throws over the final 1:04 to nail down the W, scoring their most points since a 110-77 victory at Molloy on December 19, 2017. Ronnie Silva (22 points, 7-10 FG, 5-6 from 3, eight assists), Austin Beech (17 of his 21 points in the second half on 9-of-10 shooting) and Coalmon (14 points, 4-8 from long range, six rebounds) rounded out the Panthers’ double-digit scorers, while Roland (career-high 30 points, 10-15 FG, 5-9 from distance), Tom Brown (26 points, career high-tying 15 rebounds), Malik Garner (19 points) and Zay Jennings (12 points, four assists) did the heavy lifting for Le Moyne. The Dolphins – who allowed more than 100 points in a home game for the first time since November 28, 2004 (101-73 vs. Bentley) and the second-most ever at home (108-66 vs. St. Anselm on January 10, 2000) – shot a strong 51% themselves and committed just four of the game’s 16 turnovers, resulting in a 19-6 scoring edge, though it wasn’t enough to offset Adelphi's shooting prowess. Le Moyne had won 18 of its last 20 games vs. all divisional rivals, with the two losses having come in Syracuse.
SOUTHERN CONNECTICUT 98 PACE 94 (OT)
C.J. Seaforth drilled a tying trifecta from the left-corner with four seconds left, and Lyron Bennett knocked down another five seconds into overtime, powering Southern Connecticut past Pace at the Goldstein Center and tying idle crosstown rival New Haven for third. Isaiah Boissard notched a career-high 31 points (9-14 FG, 4-4 from afar, 9-11 FT) in 41 minutes to lead the Owls, who swept the season series and won their 17th of 20 in the series, including a second straight OT win in Pleasantville. A tight game most of the night, as evidenced by 10 ties and 14 lead changes, Southern led by as many as eight (38-30) in the first and the Setters by that same margin (76-68) with six-and-a-half minutes left in the second. The visitors responded with 10 unanswered to surge in front, 78-76, on a Seaforth lay-up, and that would be the first of six lead swaps before the senior guard knocked down the tying triple. Southern Connecticut had a chance to steal the win in regulation as a turnover in the backcourt led to a Greg Jones field-goal attempt, though it fell short at the buzzer. The Owls never trailed in the extra session, though Austin Gilbertson (20 points, 7-10 FG, 4-6 from 3) had a good look at a potential tying 3-ball with 42 seconds on the clock after connecting from the same spot at the 1:26 mark. Peyton Wejnert (26 points, 12 rebounds in 45 minutes) intentionally missed a foul shot with 4.3 seconds remaining and Pace down 96-94, but Bennett grabbed the rebound, was fouled and sank the clinching free throws with less than a second to go. Jones collected 20 points, nine rebounds and career-high five assists for the winners, who also received 13 points from Seaforth and Bennett, the latter adding four assists in 41 minutes of action. Levar Allen chipped in with a personal high-tying 12 points off the bench for Southern, while the Setters placed Tyrone Cohen, Jr. (18 points, 4-8 from deep), Christian Adams (13 bench points) and Brandon Jacobs (12 points, 10 assists without taking a break) in double figures, dropping back to fifth in the division, albeit a half-game out of third. Both teams shot it well (SCSU 50%, PU 56%), including from beyond the arc (SCSU 10-22, PU 12-23) and at the stripe (SCSU 26-29, PU 18-22). The 98 points were the most allowed by Pace since a 98-74 home setback to New Haven on February 15, 2017.
ST. ANSELM 72 SOUTHERN NEW HAMPSHIRE 61
Make it five straight for St. Anselm, which pulled away from crosstown rival Southern New Hampshire at Stoutenburgh Gym for a season sweep and a half-game lead in the Northwest Division over idle Stonehill. The Hawks were enjoying a 31-23 lead before hitting a deep freeze, allowing 15 unanswered points over the last 7:29 of the half to go down 36-31, then continuing to struggle when play resumed, going 10:26 without a basket in falling behind 42-34 six-and-a-half minutes into the second stanza. The hosts would awaken from their slumber, however, unleashing a 15-2 run to regain the upper hand at 49-44 after a Tyler Arbuckle bucket with 8:38 to play. The lead would change hands four more times before a 55-55 deadlock with five-and-a-half minutes left. That's when Gustav Suhr-Jessen (eight points and rebounds) splashed a three to trigger a 15-3 upswing and put the game out of reach at 70-58 with 1:19 remaining. Miles Tention topped the St. A’s scoresheet with 19 points and seven rebounds in 40 minutes. He was followed by Chris Paul (17 points, 2-2 from long range, 10 rebounds) and Arbuckle (15 points), while Eamonn Joyce registered 17 points and 13 rebounds in defeat for the fifth-place Penmen, who also received 13 and nine, respectively, from Michael Almonacy. Neither team distinguished itself in the shooting department (SAC 38%, SNHU 36%), but the Hawks were more potent from 3-point land (9-23 to 3-21). The game marked the 1,000th in coach Keith Dickson's brilliant, 34-year career, duing which he has posted an outstanding overall record of 658-342.
ASSUMPTION 93 ST. MICHAEL’S 74
Assumption moves within a game of SNHU for the fifth and final playoff berth after downing St. Michael’s in Worcester. All five starters reached twin figures for the balanced Greyhounds, with Isaiah Gaiter (20 points, 7-11 FG, six rebounds, four assists) leading the way, followed by Jordan White (19 points, 4-5 from long range, 10 boards), Matthew Kelly (19 points, 6-9 FG, 3-4 from 3, five helpers), Cal Connelly (13 points, 3-5 from deep) and Malik Brown (12 points). Assumption never trailed in the contest, and used a 25-8 spell in expanding a 59-51 advantage to 84-59 after White’s long ball with 5:14 to go; the margin never dipping below the 19-point final thereafter. Kasai Brown totaled 19 points, nine rebounds and five assists to pace the Purple Knights, who also saw Jordan Guzman (16 points), Jontai Williams (career high-tying 13 bench points, 5-5 FG, 3-3 from distance) and Walker Storey (10 points in reserve duty) reach double figures. Both teams were formidable from behind the 3-point line (AC 12-25, SMC 13-27), but the Hounds fared better at the stripe (15-19 to 7-12), on the glass (42-30) and off turnovers (28-12). St. Michael's now finds itself 2.5 games behind in the playoff race with four games still on the schedule.
POLL POSITION
There was virtually no movement in the NABC Top 25 Coaches’ Poll as the Top 11 remained stationary, including Jefferson at #10 and Bridgeport at #11. St. Thomas Aquinas inches up two spots to #12, giving the East Region three teams in succession. Defending national champion Northwest Missouri State remains #1.