* Two more conference champions were crowned on Sunday, one going back-to-back, the other an old favorite. The final pre-NCAA tourney recap kicks off in the nation's capital...
* The Rowland sisters combined for 46 of Queens' 60 points as the Knights held off a late Roberts Wesleyan rally to secure their second straight ECC title, 60-54. Tournament Most Outstanding Player Madison Rowland led the way with 17 points and 10 rebounds while sisters MacKenzie (16 points, 19 boards, 5 rejections) and Merrick (13 points, 5 rebounds) also sparkled. QC never trailed in the game but the Redhawks stayed with them step-for-step until the latter stages of the third period. The Knights led 12-6 after one quarter and 20-16 at the break, and it took an 8-0 flurry to end the third frame to finally establish a working margin (45-32). The gap peaked at 17 points (50-33 and 52-35) before RWC kicked into gear. A 21-7 binge shaved the lead to 57-54 with 16 seconds left but they Redhawks ran out of time as Kaitlyn Mahon sank 3-4 at the stripe in the last :15 to wrap it up for Queens. Samantha Courtney (16 points, 14 boards), Taylor Bynoe (15 points, 8 caroms) and Brooke Fields (12 points) led a Redhawk effort which proved gritty all the way. Queens had relatively slim advantages in free throws (15-22; RWC 13-22 FT), from three-point land (5-1) and off the glass (53-43, including 19-8 in offensive boards), balancing off 29% shooting (RWC shot 35%). With the win Queens gains the ECC's automatic bid to the NCAA tournament.
* After a one-year hiatus, Bentley is back atop the Northeast-10 pile, using a game-changing 14-0 fourth period surge to deny AIC the title in Waltham, 67-60. In a compelling game that saw ten ties and fourteen lead swaps, the Falcons led late in the first half, 27-20, before the Yellow Jackets cut it to 27-24 at the half. AIC followed that up with a dynamic third period (19-9) which yielded as much as a nine-point edge (43-34, 1:13). The Jackets still held a 51-44 lead with 5:37 remaining after a Brianna Bishop (19 points) basket but the Falcons responded in a big way. Megan Lewis (18 points, 5 boards, 5-9 3FG) started the killer run with a three-pointer and capped it with the final five points and as a result Bentley had a 58-51 lead with 1:52 to play. AIC managed to get within five points thereafter but the Falcons held their nerve and drilled 9-12 at the line in the final 61 seconds to earn the 19th league tourney triumph in their history. Bentley, in fact, has now won 15 straight NE-10 playoff games and 12 consecutive post season contests. Jen Gemma (12 points, 9 rebounds; 7-7 FT) picked up Most Outstanding Player honors for the Falcons while Victoria Lux (14 points, 5 boards), Macchi Smith (12 points, 5 boards, 4 assists; 7-9 FT) and Lauren Green (11 points; 9-10 FT) also contributed double figures. Kamika Mason (16 points, 11 rebounds) gave Bishop the most support for AIC, which only lost for the second time this season away from home. Both teams shot in the low 30's (Bentley, 32%-31%), fared well at the line as a unit (Bentley 26-32; AIC 18-20 FT) and crashed the offensive glass with vigor (16-15 in offensive boards in AIC's column). Bentley is the likely top seed and host in the upcoming NCAA East regional while AIC is all but assured an at-large bid.