Inside the Numbers: Gardner-Webb at Queens

 

Queens guard Chris Ashby and his family pose with Royals coach Grant Leonard before Wednesday's win over Gardner-Webb. (Photo:  Brian Wilmer/Daly Dose of Hoops)

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CHARLOTTE – On a Wednesday evening when Queens honored one of its longest-standing stars, a new standout shined, a returning leader set the pace, and a first-year player earned a special honor.

Queens placed five scorers in double figures while turning in two 50-point halves and racing past regional rival Gardner-Webb, 107-74.

You know what happened. The time, then, has obviously arrived to go…Inside the Numbers!

• Queens coach Grant Leonard has spent much of his tenure with the Royals emphasizing that the ball needs to move crisply in the offense for the team to be successful. There was no doubt that this was the case Wednesday. Queens made a dizzying 41 baskets, with help coming on 23 of those shots. The Royals took advantage of their pace and spacing to create great shots.

“23 assists – I think that is special,” Leonard said. “I knew they were going to switch, so we were prepared for how they were going to defend us. Really, our entire offense is predicated on taking what the defense gives them, so if they overhelp, a lot of times, the kicks are going to be there. For us, it’s just about making the right reads.”

“I’ve got (teammates) rolling to the basket every time,” guard Nas Mann added. “If I’m not getting downhill to score or playing off two feet and get some to my teammates, they’re going to be wide open. (The credit) really goes to the bigs. Every single time, they get out of screens.”

• Mann finished with 20 points, just two away from besting his career-high that he logged earlier this season at Villanova. Mann knocked down 8-of-12 shots and snagged six misses while adding three triples.

“It really is just playing with effort,” Mann said after the game. “We knew it was going to be a great game for transition, and that’s something we excel at. All I did was just run the floor and stayed in the shots that I shoot every day.”

• Gardner-Webb put Queens into some different defensive looks, including several different presses.

“I was mad the first time (we were pressed) when Jordan Watford turned it over,” Leonard said. “After that, I thought we got the ball out on their traps and we were able to attack. I think the biggest thing when you play pressing teams and they’re going to put two on the ball at 80 feet, you’ve got to take advantage of it in the full court and try to score. The entire goal is to get two guys on the ball, whether it’s half-court or full-court. We’re going to invite it, and our guys are going to get the ball and make the right play.”

Gardner-Webb also used some zone looks against the Royals just as they did the year prior in Boiling Springs. Leonard was happy with how his team handled the zone.

“(They’re the) first team that’s played zone on us all year, and I thought we didn’t hesitate. We carved it up,” Leonard said.

• Freshman guard Isaiah Henry was awarded the Buddy the Street Dog statue for his play Wednesday night. Henry played 14 minutes and scored nine points, grabbed three rebounds, and dished two helpers while finishing plus-18 for the game.

“The best part about coaching – you know that you have a team full of guys and everyone can’t get what they want. Everyone sacrifices for each other,” Leonard said. “At first, Isaiah just wasn’t ready. He wasn’t ready to make the right decisions, but we just – and the guys told him – to stay positive and be ready, that his time was coming. Now, the last three games, he’s played really well and solidified himself in our rotation, and he’s going to have a great second half of the year. We all love him and know how good he is. He’s got a lot of talent.”

• The Queens interior defense earned kudos from Leonard. The Royals held the Runnin’ Bulldogs to 28 points in the paint and an even more impressive 17-for-47 (36.2 percent) from two-point range.

“We’re making huge steps defensively with protecting the rim,” Leonard said. “I thought we did a great job with that.”

• Queens forward Avantae Parker also received plaudits for both his defense and offense.

“Defensively, he’s getting better and better, and he’s going to be the anchor of our defense and protect our rim. We’re proud of the steps he’s making. You’re going to keep seeing him have nights like this, where he goes 9-for-10 (shooting) and Nas goes 8-for-12, because people are so worried about our shooting from the perimeter.”

• Star guard Chris Ashby was honored before the game for his stellar career and 1,000-plus career points. Ashby tallied 14 points on 5-for-10 shooting Wednesday, hitting 4-of-8 from three and a long two-pointer. There’s still more time for Ashby to add to his legend at Queens, but he will go down in Royal lore as one of the best players to ever grace the campus.
  
  
• Queens hit 15 threes for the third time this season. The Royals canned 16 against Sacred Heart and 15 against UNC Greensboro. The Royals logged their best three-point shooting percentage of the season, though, knocking down 51.7 percent of their 29 tries. Three shooters hit multiple triples, with Ashby and Carson Schwieger draining four apiece and Mann dropping three.
  
  
• Leonard summed up the inside-outside effort with this succinct quote:  “I thought Gardner-Webb just did not know which poison to take today.”
  
  
• Mann led the Royals and all scorers with 20. Parker added 18, with Ashby and Schwieger notching 14 and 12, respectively. Maban Jabriel contributed 11 and hauled in five boards in reserve duty. Four Runnin’ Bulldogs finished in doubles, with Spence Sims, Jacob Hogarth, and Ace Talbert scoring 15 each. Curtis Williams added 13 for the visitors. Hogarth and Williams also boarded seven misses apiece.

Next up:  Queens will take nine days off for finals before returning to action on Friday, Dec. 12, against South Carolina State. That game is slated for a 7:00 (Eastern) tip, with ESPN+ handling the coverage. Gardner-Webb returns home to Paul Porter Arena for a Saturday afternoon tilt with Georgia Southern. Game time is set for 2:00 from Boiling Springs, N.C., with ESPN+ providing the stream.

Hustle Stats:

Points off turnovers:  Queens 13, Gardner-Webb 8

Points in the paint:  Queens 50, Gardner-Webb 28

Second-chance points:  Gardner-Webb 23, Queens 15

Fast-break points:  Queens 14, Gardner-Webb 6

Bench points:  Queens 36, Gardner-Webb 11

Queens:  1.486 points per possession (72 trips), 65.3% scoring, 13.9% turnovers

Gardner-Webb:  1.014 points per possession (73 trips), 43.8% scoring, 13.7% turnovers

QUEENS 107, GARDNER-WEBB 74

GARDNER-WEBB (0-10)

Sims 6-9 0-0 15, Hogarth 7-12 1-1 15, Williams 4-13 4-4 13, Hawkins 2-9 1-1 5, Talbert 4-12 4-5 15, Ferere 1-5 4-4 6, Hudson 0-4 2-2 2, Riek 0-1 0-0 0, Peterson 1-4 0-0 3, Gales 0-2 0-0 0, Ndiaye 0-0 0-1 0. Totals 25-71 16-18 74.

QUEENS (4-5)

Watford 2-3 3-4 7, Mann 8-12 1-3 20, Parker 9-10 0-2 18, Ashby 5-10 0-0 14, Schwieger 4-5 0-0 12, Henry 4-6 0-0 9, Celestin 0-0 0-0 0, Clark 1-2 0-0 3, Larson 3-4 3-4 9, Jabriel 4-7 2-2 11, Crider 0-1 0-0 0, Berman 1-6 1-2 4. Totals 41-66 10-17 107.

Halftime:  Queens 52-37. 3-Point goals: Queens 15-29 (Mann 3-5, Parker 0-1, Ashby 4-8, Schwieger 4-5, Henry 1-1, Clark 1-2, Jabriel 1-3, Berman 1-3), Gardner-Webb 8-24 (Sims 3-3, Williams 1-6, Hawkins 0-2, Talbert 2-8, Hudson 0-1, Peterson 1-3, Gales 0-1). Fouled out:  NA.  Rebounds:  Gardner-Webb 38 (Hogarth/Williams 7), Queens 38 (Mann/Larson 6). Total fouls:  Gardner-Webb 15, Queens 13. Technicals:  Parker (QUC).

Mullins’ evolution the latest revelation as UConn continues to ascend toward its peak

Braylon Mullins attempts 3-pointer during UConn’s win at Kansas. In just two games, the highly touted freshman has already lived up to his massive potential. (Photo by Denny Medley/Imagn Images)

LAWRENCE, Kan. — Braylon Mullins’ ability to shoot and space the floor was what attracted Dan Hurley to the McDonald’s All-American, eventually getting the 6-foot-6 Mr. Basketball from Indiana to spurn his hometown Hoosiers in favor of UConn.

Mullins’ journey to the self-proclaimed basketball capital of the world was anything but smooth, however. An ankle injury suffered in practice just weeks before UConn’s season opener delayed his debut. And with teammate Tarris Reed, Jr. also hampered by injury in the first month of the season, the outlook for the Huskies — although still promising from a long-term view — appeared more cautiously managed from the immediate perspective.

The tension has lessened in recent days, replaced instead by the optimism that permeated the program leading up to the season after Mullins not only made his long-awaited maiden appearance in a UConn uniform Friday against Illinois, but followed it up with a performance that turned more heads Tuesday. In just his second career game, Mullins may have been the best player on the floor for the fifth-ranked Huskies, scoring 17 points on 6-of-12 shooting and posting a team-best plus-13 as UConn defeated Kansas for the first time in program history.

Similar to how Stephon Castle was eased back into the lineup two years ago following an early-season injury, Hurley has done the same with Mullins. The coach regretted not being able to play his star rookie more than 10 minutes against Illinois, but was able to help acclimate him further against Kansas, to the tune of 22 minutes and 54 seconds against the Jayhawks, who were shorthanded themselves as freshman sensation Darryn Peterson was unavailable.

“I’m gonna be honest with you, I’m really happy to be back on the court,” the humble freshman remarked. “That’s the first step in cutting off the minute restriction. I kind of thought that after the ten minutes (against Illinois), I thought I’d just get to play a little more, but it was just kind of the flow of the game. But 22 minutes is much better than 10 minutes, so I was really happy to get back out there.”

Mullins admitted to feeling nerves in the opening minutes Tuesday, attributing that to his relative inexperience as well as the intimidating environment of Allen Fieldhouse, but found a comfort zone as the night progressed.

“As the game went along, we just played basketball,” he said. “At the end of the day, it’s a child’s game. We got some stuff done and we got the win.”

His coach continues to herald the potential of the latest star recruit to trust his development to the Huskies’ staff. And in circumstances like Tuesday’s, where Reed was declared out for the third time in four games, Mullins’ effort and impact becomes all the more valuable.

“There’s been a lot of impressive freshman performances,” Hurley conceded. Obviously, this is a special freshman class, but in these six weeks, with the type of injury he had to the knee and to the ankle, and just to be his second college game, where we were down, he sparked us. He put us in a position to win this game. This was the first step for him, and he’s obviously going to make our team a lot better moving forward.”

Karaban pays heed to Hurley’s challenge, helps will UConn to first win over Kansas

LAWRENCE, Kan. — Dan Hurley laid down an unofficial challenge to his UConn team before it took on Kansas Tuesday.

Adamant about his team crafting its own resume, and avoiding comparisons to the champions of Huskies past, the coach urged his players to do something that had never been done before. Beat the Jayhawks, Hurley insisted, if they wanted to be judged for themselves and not forced to hear him wax nostalgic about the legends of UConn lore.

Message received. And fittingly, it was the most experienced Husky who fielded the call to action and delivered with another modeling of the superhero’s cape.

Alex Karaban only scored 11 points Tuesday, but it was his personal 7-0 run midway through the second half that swung the pendulum in a rock fight, putting the fifth-ranked Huskies ahead for good with 10:47 remaining in regulation and steering them to a 61-56 victory over No. 21 Kansas at Allen Fieldhouse.

“Having played here before, I was able to kind of know what to expect,” Karaban said as UConn (7-1) earned its first-ever win over the Jayhawks in the five meetings between the schools. “This still is the hardest place I’ve ever played in my college career, so going in, I was mentally prepared for that. I think the experience really helped me out, just making sure the group stayed together throughout the entire game through all the adversary and not really getting too rattled by runs that Kansas made.”

“It’s not always gonna be pretty,” Hurley assessed. “This turned into a real brutal possession game, the pace of play was real slow and it became a real slugfest out there.”

Karaban is one of four players — Solo Ball, Jayden Ross and Jaylin Stewart the others — who faced Kansas in 2023 en route to a second straight national championship. When asked if the experience as a sophomore played a role in helping him stabilize his team on this night, he did not hesitate to reveal he was playing with some added motivation.

“Definitely,” he said. “Going into it, I knew what to expect because the first time, this place was amazing. The second time, you get the idea of what to expect. There weren’t really nerves, but as much as I love this team, in the back of my head, I kept saying, ‘do this for the ’24 team, get this back for the ’24 team.’ To make history with this team for UConn for this year, and get that little revenge for those guys in ’24 that I love, is special.”

“This ’26 team did something that the ’24 team never did,” a proud Hurley echoed. “And we want to accomplish things that the ’24 team couldn’t, so I think the team should be more competitive and want to do shit that the ’24 team didn’t do. That’s my mindset.”

The measure of retribution was almost in vain, as Kansas (6-3) let UConn stay within earshot through most of the first half, but seemed to find an answer whenever the Huskies threatened. The Jayhawks outrebounded UConn by a 22-13 margin in the opening stanza, but the visitors flipped the script to the tune of a 25-10 margin in the final frame, as Hurley used a smaller lineup — with Karaban as the de facto center to spell Eric Reibe — to turn the tables amid a raucous environment.

“This was gonna be all about just weathering the storm this whole game,” Hurley reiterated. “The crowd gets so loud, they make runs, just keep your composure. The switching bothered us. I thought there were things that were not seen. Our guards don’t have their eyes in places to see some of the things that were available versus the switch, and I don’t think we punished it enough getting the ball to Reibe more.”

Reibe did, however, hold his own against Flory Bidunga, finishing his night with 12 points and eight rebounds as the freshman drew the start in place of Tarris Reed, Jr., who missed his third game in four contests as he recovers from an ankle injury.

“If you said to me before the game that Eric would play Flory basically even in the game, that’s big-time stuff by a freshman center at this place,” Hurley said.

Reibe was not the only freshman to turn in a career night, as Braylon Mullins added 17 points off the bench in his second career game. But as the youth had its moments to shine, it was also a salute to a leader, a veteran, a champion.

“Alex had a bad first half,” Hurley admitted. “I just thought he showed the resilience and the mental toughness just to grind out a way to score some field goals late with some off-ball movement. He just gutted it out, and that’s what champions do. He’s the biggest champion in college basketball.”

UConn faces stiff challenge not just from Kansas’ roster, but also from atmosphere and past history

UConn visits Kansas for second time in three years, still searching for first win in program history against Jayhawks. (Photo by Nick Krug/Kansas Athletics) 

LAWRENCE, Kan. — A five-word credo greets the visitors of Allen Fieldhouse upon admission to one of college basketball’s most storied and mystical venues.

Pay Heed, All Who Enter.

The owner of a Guinness World Record for loudest indoor arena, with a recorded volume of over 130 decibels, Kansas’ home floor is equal parts intimidating and opportunistic. Regarding the latter, those who come off the floor named after the man who founded the sport of basketball victorious do so with a noticeable feather in their collective cap, but not without a price.

If UConn is to invade the Sunflower State and defeat 21st-ranked Kansas Tuesday, it will have assuredly earned such a triumph, especially since there is no way to truly prepare for what lies ahead other than experiencing it in real time.

“I could tell them how loud it’s going to be, but there’s very few places you play at anywhere near their level of atmosphere,” head coach Dan Hurley intimated. “It’s just so unique playing at Kansas, the places that you go and play at where they’re so coordinated and they’ve got such great tradition. Places like Kansas, Duke (with) Cameron Indoor, there’s certain places that you go and play where the home team has a major advantage just because of your inability to communicate, how difficult the environment is, how engaged the fans are from the tip.”

Crowd volume was already on the minds of the fifth-ranked Huskies following their win last Friday at Madison Square Garden against another ranked team in Illinois, as freshman center Eric Reibe joked that he and his teammates would need to learn sign language to try to combat the intensity of the Jayhawks fan base. Hurley confirmed that on Monday leading up to the clash of two of the sport’s titans, crediting Kansas fans for their consistent knack of getting opposing teams off kilter.

Dan Hurley exhorts UConn during Huskies’ 2023 meeting with Kansas. In four previous matchups with Jayhawks, Hurley has come closest of anyone to defeating one of college basketball’s powerbrokers. (Photo by Nick Krug/Kansas Athletics)

“They’re loud the entire game, not just when the team’s playing well,” he said. “They make you play worse as a road team and they get their home team going, too. There’s communication things defensively, offensively, that we’ll try to do, but there’s no simulating the actual environment because it’s a rare place to play.”

Four times previously, UConn has faced Kansas. Four times, it has come up short against one of the sport’s heavyweights. Jim Calhoun’s 1994-95 and 1996-97 teams were defeated by a Roy Williams-led squad that included future NBA players Paul Pierce and Raef LaFrentz, among others; while Kevin Ollie was also unsuccessful in conquering the Jayhawks, falling short in the second round of the 2016 NCAA Tournament.

Hurley has actually come the closest to making history on this front, battling Kansas two years ago to the tune of a narrow 69-65 result that came down to the final seconds. It does not take much to motivate him or his players, but he did implore the current UConn roster that if it wants to be judged on its own plane, a win Tuesday in one of the landmarks of the sport — in arguably the most hostile of road environments — would be a major starting point for such an independent evaluation.

Alex Karaban has won two national championships at UConn, but victory over Kansas is one of few bullets missing from an accomplished resume. (Photo by Nick Krug/Kansas Athletics)

“The one thing I’ve said to the team is when you play or coach at UConn, you hear so much about past championship teams,” he said. “You hear nonstop about these teams, and this year’s team has a have to do something that none of those great teams have done.”

“If you’re tired of hearing about Donovan Clingan and Steph Castle, and Cam Spencer and Tristen Newton, you’re tired of hearing stories from your coach about what type of players those players were, what types of teams those teams were, then go do something that those teams didn’t do. Start creating your own legacy as a team, start building a resume as a team if you’re tired of me talking about those teams with such great nostalgia.”

UConn is back at full strength, but where do Huskies go from here?

NEW YORK — UConn’s most valuable piece through the first mint of perhaps the most difficult schedule in the country has been the quality of its rotation, a potent arsenal that — even through injuries — has managed to win six of seven games and maintain its Top 5 ranking.

The fifth-ranked Huskies finally got a glimpse of what their finished product could be Friday, when Tarris Reed, Jr. made his return to the lineup and star freshman Braylon Mullins debuted after an ankle injury sustained in late October. Even though both were held back as they continue to recover, the vision remained the same for Dan Hurley, who foresaw an interchangeable collection of parts with minimal, if any, dropoff.

“I think when Braylon is back, I think you’re just going to see a cluster of eight or nine guys that are somewhere between seven and 15 (points per game),” Hurley said after UConn’s win over Bryant last week. “And I think the strength of this team is going to be the numbers. It’s going to be shades of the ’23 team just because of the depth. The depth on this team is the strength.”

Mullins played only 10 minutes in Friday’s win over Illinois, a total Hurley was hard on himself for not increasing ever so slightly. But as the rookie finds his niche in the Husky repertoire, he will do so in a manner similar to how Stephon Castle was groomed when he went down in the second game of the 2023-24 season, and then returned against North Carolina several weeks later.

“We went through this with Steph,” Hurley recounted. “I think it’s going to be a gradual situation for (Mullins) to work his way back. I think the good thing is he’s going to be able to come off the bench and just try to help us, and not have to carry this big weight. We’ll use a similar method of how we brought Steph Castle back.”

Heralded by the coach as a “major difference maker,” Mullins has made strides in practice, and with his presence on the wing, will ease matters for Alex Karaban and Solo Ball, the latter still working his way out of a shooting slump while the former is playing more within himself and less burdened, compared to last season.

“He’s getting way more comfortable out there,” Karaban said of his freshman teammate. “What he does in practice — he kills in practice, so I know he’s gonna get more comfortable out there and he’s gonna be a star for us.”

As for Reed, the senior big man is vital for UConn on both ends of the floor, and will undoubtedly be tasked with controlling Kansas’ Flory Bidunga should he be able to suit up Tuesday against the Jayhawks. Hurley called Reed a gametime decision in his pregame press conference Monday, but admitted having his veteran center out there would add a dimension not replicated by anyone else.

“He changes everything about our offense and defense,” Hurley said of Reed. “We start playing in a donut or we start running around the 3-point line too much, because we don’t have enough diversity on offense. He solves a lot of that problem because you’re talking about a guy who’s a 70 percent shooter when we throw him the ball around the block. So just getting Tarris back healthy — hopefully a lot healthier for the Kansas game — and then obviously, Braylon, we want to get these guys to the point where maybe going into Tuesday, you’re not talking about minutes restrictions. Those two guys are gonna change our team a lot.”

“Seeing someone like Tarris just being on the court with you gives you a lot of trust and a lot of hope,” Karaban added. “Just how dominant of a presence he is inside and just what he can change defensively and rebounding, we need him desperately. It’s just a huge pressure off our team when he’s out there.”

UConn’s biggest luxury may very well be the ability to take baby steps when bringing two impact players back. As the senior voice in the locker room and a two-time champion, Karaban recognizes the significance of having versatile teammates to play off of. The senior forward did not move to quantify the intangibles, but admitted their returns to full strength will only bolster a team already viewed as a national championship contender before their recoveries.

“They’re both pushing through right now,” he said of Reed and Mullins. “Having those two guys back changes everything for us, offensively, defensively and it just makes us even more dangerous, so I’m excited for that.”

Making sense of Merrimack as MAAC opening week looms

PHILADELPHIA — Joe Gallo has always challenged his Merrimack teams in non-conference play, no matter the level.

Now a proven winner in the Division I ranks, Gallo’s approach is no different from when he transformed the Warriors into a nationally ranked Division II outfit. This season, the tuneup for Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference play featured a pair of Final Four participants in Auburn and reigning national champion Florida.

But because of the arduous schedule, comprised partly to test his players but also to keep the program afloat with buy game revenue that becomes increasingly precious in the age of NIL, Gallo has had to deploy his roster in unorthodox situations through the non-league slate. Transfer Todd Brogna, who was brought in from former conference rival Stonehill in the offseason, is a prime example having become a de facto center away from his more traditional post position.

“Because of the schedule, we’ve been playing him at the five and we’ve been punching up,” Gallo said Sunday after Merrimack ended a three-game losing streak by defeating La Salle. “Todd Brogna is a really good post player, he was one of the most efficient post players in the country last year. There hasn’t been as much post opportunity. I think we’ve gotta find a way, when the shots aren’t falling, to keep up our defensive intensity but figure out ways to get Todd in the post, put a little more pressure on the rim to where we’re not feast or famine with the three-ball.”

Merrimack (3-6) was able to feast from beyond the arc Sunday, making 10 of its 28 attempts from deep. The proficiency is something that has not consistently revealed itself through the first month of the season, but Gallo praised his squad for weathering the storm and allowing the offense to dictate the strong effort turned in by the Warriors’ 2-3 zone defense.

“I knew we’d come out with some energy,” he admitted. “I think we’re a really good shooting team and the ball’s just not falling right now. We made some shots early and it dipped off a little bit, and I thought in the prior games, our misses affected our defense. We’ve been winning games — we won a Northeast-10 final, like, 42-39, ten years ago against New Haven. Guys have to get more comfortable in these rock fight games. And then when the shots are falling, maybe we win, 75-62.”

“We have way too many long bad stretches. If we get seven or more (instances with) three stops in a row, we win 90 percent of our games. We’ve done it a bunch. The problem is, we’ve had about six reverse turkeys, where people score three times in a row. So it’s been feast or famine instead of, three stops in a row, they score. We’ve had way too many 10-0 runs against our defense, and it deflated us a little bit.”

The biggest strength of the Merrimack zone has been its adaptability. Gallo proudly notes on a yearly basis that his defense is not a one-size-fits-all system, that it can be tailored to his personnel and take on a different look than the previous season. This year, with taller guards in Kevair Kennedy and Tye Dorset anchoring it, the ball pressure is more prevalent and thus, an added facet that makes the scheme harder to solve, as La Salle found out Sunday.

“When Kevair and Tye are up there, it’s a little more size than we’re used to,” Gallo shared. “We’ve always had a smaller guard, so we feel that with their length, they can pressure and get to the next pass. But sometimes, it’s also game-to-game. We knew (La Salle) wanted to attack us down the floor, so we were trying to take away vision so they couldn’t bullet the ball to one of those bigs and run us over.”

The other positive to Sunday’s defensive effort was the underrated presence of KC Ugwuakazi in the middle, something Gallo regrets not exposing more frequently to start the season. Still searching for a rim protector following Bryan Etumnu’s transfer to Wright State, Gallo may have found something in the 6-foot-8 East Texas A&M transfer, a more physical specimen than his predecessor and bigger body to collect the ball in the post. 

“I’ve been telling myself I’ve gotta play him more,” he said of Ugwuakazi, the junior forward. “He earned that. We’ve always had that kind of motor guy in the middle, and with Todd at the five, it’s been a little more offensive. But we’ve gotta get back to that. KC and Dylan Veillette, I thought they both battled in there.”

“Bryan was so long that he would actually block some of those high-post jumpers and short corner jumpers. KC blocks a little more at the rim, but KC’s a little bigger and stronger than (Etumnu). He doesn’t get moved around like Bryan did at times. I’ve just gotta find more minutes, because he makes a difference defensively.”

A much-needed confidence boost comes out of Sunday’s win, perhaps at the most opportune time. Merrimack begins MAAC play this week with two home games against Rider (Thursday) and Fairfield (Sunday). If the Warriors are to start the conference slate 2-0 as they did last year after the Buffalo trip to Canisius and Niagara, they will have been able to sustain valuable goodwill coming from the road that led them there.

“You need this,” Gallo reiterated. “The one thing when you play a tough schedule, is I’m used to it, but when you have ten new guys, I think they’ve adjusted to the basketball just fine. You don’t want residual effects of playing a tough schedule. If we lose this game, you’re sitting on your phone, staring at a screen for seven hours texting people. (Winning) makes that ride home so much more enjoyable, and you roll up to campus with some momentum.”

Hofstra guards key strong second half as Pride sweeps Cathedral Classic

Cruz Davis led five Hofstra players in double figures as Pride capped off sweep of Cathedral Classic Sunday against Penn. (Photo by Nick Textores/Hofstra Athletics)

PHILADELPHIA — Due to its proclivity for producing a Who’s Who of mid-major backcourt stars since the turn of the century, Hofstra University has come to be affectionately dubbed Guard U.

Those closer to the program remember the halcyon days of the 2000s, when the likes of Antoine Agudio, Loren Stokes and Carlos Rivera — and before them, Speedy Claxton, Norman Richardson and Jason Hernandez — bequeathed a four-word credo around Long Island: In Guards We Trust.

No matter who suits up in the Pride blue and gold, one thing is certain, that those in the backcourt will find a way to ignite enough of a fire to succeed. That much was true Sunday, when Cruz Davis and Preston Edmead — the latest iteration of Guard U — combined for 29 points and 13 assists as Hofstra used their firepower to pull away from Penn in the second half, coasting to a 77-60 victory over the Quakers.

With the win, Hofstra’s third in as many days, the Pride swept the Cathedral Classic at The Palestra, having defeated La Salle and Merrimack on Friday and Saturday, respectively.

“Those two guys have been outstanding, man,” Claxton — now in his fifth season as the head coach of his alma mater — said of Davis and Edmead. “Starting from the summertime, I knew that they were gonna be our leaders, and I can’t say enough about those guys. The way they approach the game, the way they approach every single day, they’re always the first ones on the court, last ones to leave. They’ve put so much work into it and they’re starting to see their hard work pay off. I’m so happy for them.”

“That’s the really good thing about this team. You never know where the points are going to come. They really play team basketball, they let the offense dictate who’s gonna get the shot. We put Cruz in positions to make plays for himself and others down the stretch, because he’s our go-to guy. He came through for us and he always made the right reads. Cruz has been great all year.”

The coach knew what to expect from Davis, in his second season at Hofstra after following Rick Pitino from Iona to St. John’s. But in Edmead, even Claxton had no idea the youngest of three brothers to play college basketball would be so good so soon.

Preston Edmead (1) continued stellar start to freshman season Sunday, with 11 points, eight assists and six rebounds. (Photo by Nick Textores/Hofstra Athletics)

“I did not envision this,” he admitted. “(Edmead) works extremely hard on his game. When I say he’s our hardest worker, he’s by far our hardest worker. He loves basketball, he eats, sleeps and dreams basketball. So I’m not surprised at his success right now.”

After a first half in which Penn — who, like Hofstra, had won both of its first two games in the multi-team event — took a two-point advantage into the locker room, Claxton made one aspect of the game plan clear to his team over the final 20 minutes, urging the Pride to remain aggressive.

“I think our pressure wore them down, and that was one of the biggest things that we wanted to do coming into the game,” he said. “We didn’t think they could handle our pressure, and I think overall, we kind of just wore them down. We just told them to stay with the pressure, and we would wear them down eventually. That’s all that happened.”

Fifth-year senior German Plotnikov, one of five Hofstra players with 10 or more points, ultimately put the Pride in front to stay, and needed just 12 seconds to do so when his left corner three gave the visitors a 34-33 lead immediately out of the intermission.

“German’s solid,” Claxton remarked. “He’s been here for a couple years now, so he knows our system. He knows what we expect from him, and he just goes out there and does it. He’s always approached it businesslike, and I don’t expect anything less from him.”

Now 5-3 through the first month of the season, Hofstra’s next challenge comes Wednesday on the road against a veteran Columbia team that has looked strong under first-year coach Kevin Hovde. While Claxton is still learning about his next opponent, he has also taken the time to educate himself on what he has in his own locker room, with a positive read on a roster blended with experience and youth.

“I think I’m finding out a lot about my team right now,” he admitted. “We’re pretty good. I’m happy with the way we played. I’m not gonna say (we made) a statement, but we did beat two really good teams. These kids, they played hard. The thing with this team is they listen and they’re learning. I’m still learning about them, but I do like what I’m seeing right now.”

Princeton’s three at buzzer off the mark as Tigers fall to St. Joe’s

Jackson Hicke (33) led Princeton with 20 points, but Tigers lost nailbiter to Saint Joseph’s Sunday. (Photo by Princeton Men’s Basketball)

By Andrew Hefner (@Ahef_NJ)

TRENTON, N.J. — The perennial Jersey Jam at the Cure Insurance Arena in New Jersey’s capital was a story of closure for both Saint Joseph's and head coach Steve Donahue, as the Hawks collected a much-needed win over the Princeton Tigers.

The game came down to the wire, as the back-and-forth battle ended with St. Joe’s taking the win over an injury-plagued Princeton squad, 60-58, as Jackson Hicke’s three-point attempt at the buzzer misfired.

The Tigers, coming off a 0-3 week at the ESPN Events Invitational in Orlando, were already without star guard Dalen Davis, and in addition, lost sophomore starter CJ Happy to illness and big man Malik Abdullahi to a foot injury midway through the first half.  

“Yeah, we're banged up, and the timing of the games has been rough,” said Princeton head coach Mitch Henderson. “But we're right there, we're knocking on the door, finding lots of different ways to shoot ourselves in the foot. But, these games are gonna help us in the long run.” 

Princeton did get off to a hot start in the game, though, climbing to a 14-5 lead in the first off of huge Jack Stanton threes to open the scoring. Stanton, a breakout sophomore for Princeton, has been on a tear to open the season and has become one of the top three-point shooters for a pretty long-range dependent program. 

Alongside Stanton in the early game was Hicke, who has also come into his own early on in the season, cementing himself as one of the biggest weapons and leaders of the team, alongside Davis. The junior finished his night with 20 points, his third straight game reaching that plateau.

“Without those two guys, we'd be in big trouble,” remarked Henderson. “We aren't experienced, but each one of these games is a notch, and we get a little bit better and stronger and more experienced. It's helping us.” 

Henderson’s squad is without any seniors for this year’s campaign, as both Xaivian Lee (transferred to Florida) and Caden Pierce (sitting out) departed the program ahead of the season. As a result, Henderson has relied heavily on his young core of sophomores and especially freshmen to carry him and the team through a difficult stretch. 

“We had five freshmen play, they gotta keep getting better,” he said. “This is unusual. I don't see many people playing a lot of freshmen, but we're asking a lot of them. We gotta find the right balance of being supportive and being demanding. Practice time will help with that.”

Landon Clark was one of those freshmen who kept Princeton fighting deep into the second half, as a big three coming down the stretch was able to bring the game level for the Tigers late in the second half. He finished with a career-high nine points and played 33 minutes. On the flip side, St. Joe’s was the beneficiary of an excellent transfer class led by Deuce Jones, the Jersey Jam player of the game. Jones, who grew up in Trenton, transferred to the Hawks from La Salle and has made a name for himself early on. 

“I thought a couple of the best things he did today is he got downhill and he stopped and pivoted and found cover,” Donahue said of Jones. “The other thing is he has nine rebounds for a guy that does those kinds of things. He can impact the game on the defensive end, rebounding, make plays. Scoring, to me, should be a bonus.” 

Donahue, the longtime coach of the Tigers’ Ivy League foe Penn, picked up his first win over Princeton in his last 13 tries, while St. Joe’s got its revenge after a tough loss at home in last year's contest between the two sides. The game came down to the final buzzer, as Hicke was able to win a three-point play with less than a minute to go to make it a two-point game, before the Hawks missed a three-pointer, giving the Tigers one more shot to tie it up. With seven seconds on the clock, Princeton set up in its own end, but fantastic defensive pressure forced Hicke to take a three just shy of the logo that bounced off the rim and out to seal a St. Joe’s win at the buzzer. 

“Could you blame me for thinking that it was going in?” Donahue joked, “because it's gone in quite a few times. I have great respect for the program, and we've all had injured guys. I've had numerous guys hurt when I went against them, and they were shorthanded today.”

Donahue and St. Joe’s rise to 4-3 on the season with the win. 

After four games in a week, Henderson and the Tigers have another tight turnaround before a New Jersey battle at Monmouth on Wednesday.

Inside the Numbers: App State vs. Asheville

 

Asheville forward Toyaz Solomon had a huge day Sunday, logging 25 points in a gritty win over App State. (Photo:  Asheville Athletics)

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ASHEVILLE, N.C. – Former Manhattan and Seton Hall coach Bobby Gonzalez used to have a phrase – I’m paraphrasing here, while blending with an old coach of my own – about some games not being oil paintings.

Sunday’s game between Asheville and App State won’t be the kind of story told in history books, but there was a lot to break down from what took place inside the Harrah’s Cherokee Center on a cold, dreary afternoon. Asheville claimed a 67-55 decision over App State in a game that could be lovingly described as a slugfest.

Now that you know what happened, let’s take no one’s favorite trip…Inside the Numbers!

• Asheville (3-4) raced – almost literally – out to a 19-2 lead in the game. The Bulldogs hit eight of their first 13 shots, booking three from distance. When Asheville weren’t making shots, they were rebounding – hauling in nine boards in the first eight minutes of the contest. App State, conversely, went just 1-for-8 in those first eight minutes, before a Michael Marcus triple led the game into its second media stoppage.

App State (4-5) punched back, quickly snipping the Asheville lead to 21-15 on the strength of five straight makes. Jalen Tot splashed a pair of triples during the run to provide a boost off the bench. The Mountaineers then cut it to two on a Kasen Jennings bucket with 5:09 left in the first half. Asheville countered with back-to-back buckets from David Hermes and Kam Taylor, however, and App State could never seize the lead.

• App State had another surge in the second half, slicing the Asheville advantage to 41-38 on an Alonzo Dodd jumper with 9:56 to play. Asheville quickly countered with an 8-0 run, though, swelling the lead back to 11. App State could never again draw closer than nine.
  
  
• Kam Taylor logged a 12-point, 10-board double-double for the Bulldogs, but possibly at a cost. Taylor was noticeably limping and had to be removed from the game late. Taylor was able to leave the floor under his own power, but the Bulldogs can ill afford to be without their sophomore standout for any period of time.
  
  
• Big South Preseason Player of the Year Toyaz Solomon also had a strong game, scoring 25 and snatching eight misses in 35 minutes of play. Solomon needed 16 shots to get those 25 points, along with 9-of-11 from the line.
  
  
• Justin Wright (13) and DJ Patrick (11) joined the Bulldog pair in doubles. Patrick battled foul trouble, finishing with four. There was also a bit of a discussion between Wright and Morrell after the game, after Wright was assessed a technical late in the game for a “conversation” he had with an App State player following a slight fracas. Morrell and Wright stayed on the floor after the game, with the Bulldogs’ head man appearing to remind Wright of the importance of keeping his composure before the two shared a hug near center court.
  
  
• App State got a tremendous effort from Marcus and Tot off the bench. Marcus scored 13 in 26 minutes of reserve duty, knocking down 5-of-8 from the field (3-of-5 from deep), while Tot added eight. Dodd also finished in doubles for the Mountaineers, hitting 5-of-9 from the deck and booking 11.
  
  
• The Mountaineers held Asheville to 33 percent from the floor in the second half, with the Bulldogs hitting just six of the 18 shots they tried in the period. Asheville was held without a three in the second half, going 0-for-6 from beyond the arc.
  
  
• Asheville coach Mike Morrell was his usual quotable self. In fact, let’s give you a Quotables section just on Mike.

QUOTABLES

On the win:  “I’m really proud of the guys and how they responded. (App State) is a good team. In my eight years, I’m not saying that’s the best win we’ve had, but that’s as tough as we’ve played – as physical as we’ve played.”

On the team:  “We’re just a mess right now, man. I mean, we’ve got guys falling all over the place. I give (forward) David Hermes a lot of credit. We told him a couple days ago he was going to play. He got himself ready and I thought he was the difference, just from a physicality standpoint, so he’s going to keep playing.”

“It’s not as easy as you think just to throw guys back in the lineup once you get playing and things of that nature, so we’re still trying to get healthy and see if we can find a way to get another one here in 48 hours.”

On Asheville’s defense:  “It’s not honestly how I love to play – the kind of grind it out, get in the gaps, and low-scoring, but I’m just – given the circumstances in which we find ourselves with our team right now, I’m not sure that’s not how we’re going to have to play for a little bit.”

On Solomon:  “He played like one of the better players in the league today, and he drew – the stat that’s the best is that he drew eight fouls. He’s not been getting to the free throw line. He’s got to make the game come a little bit easier for him, and getting to the free throw line has got to be a part of that. I show him clips of Drew (Pember) all the time. That’s how Drew was able to rest and play 36 minutes (a game).”

“Maybe one day, he’ll get us double-digit rebounds. That’s an inside joke between me and him.”

Next up:  Asheville continues its downtown run, hosting UNCG in the Harrah’s Cherokee Center Tuesday night. Game time is set for 7:00, with ESPN+ handling the coverage. App State returns home to the Holmes Center in Boone, N.C., to take on Virginia-Lynchburg Wednesday night. ESPN+ will air the 6:30 tip.

Hustle Stats:

Points off turnovers:  App State 11, Asheville 9

Points in the paint:  Asheville 28, App State 24

Second-chance points:  Asheville 13, App State 8

Fast-break points:  App State 8, Asheville 8

Bench points:  App State 26, Asheville 4

ASHEVILLE 67, APP STATE 55

APP STATE (4-5)

Dodd 5-9 1-1 11, Wilson 2-4 5-8 9, Jennings 3-10 0-0 6, Banks 1-6 0-2 3, Njock 0-0 0-0 0, Marcus 5-8 0-0 13, Tot 3-10 0-0 8, Moodie 2-2 1-4 5, Clarke 0-4 0-0 0, O’Kelley 0-0 0-0 0. Totals 21-53 7-15 55.

ASHEVILLE (3-4)

Solomon 8-16 9-11 25, Wright 3-9 7-7 13, Taylor 4-10 3-5 12, Patrick 3-8 3-4 11, Mayfield 1-1 0-0 2, Hermes 1-2 0-0 2, Jones 1-3 0-0 2, Clarke 0-0 0-0 0, Thomas 0-1 0-0 0, Tolentino 0-0 0-0 0. Totals 21-50 22-27 67.

Halftime:  Asheville 33-26. 3-Point goals:  App State 6-25 (Dodd 0-1, Jennings 0-2, Banks 1-5, Marcus 3-5, Tot 2-9, Clarke 0-3), Asheville 3-18 (Solomon 0-2, Wright 0-4, Taylor 1-5, Patrick 2-5, Jones 0-2). Fouled out:  Jennings (ASU), Hermes (AVL).  Rebounds:  Asheville 36 (Taylor 10), App State 25 (Jennings/Marcus 4). Total fouls:  App State 23, Asheville 22. Technicals:  Dodd (APP), Wright (AVL).