Smith’s career-high 40 propel CCSU to third straight win

By Connor Wilson (@Conman_815)

WEST HAVEN, Conn. — Whatever Darin Smith, Jr. ate for breakfast on February 1, can I get some of what he had?

The Central Connecticut forward closed the month of January with his worst five-game scoring slump of the season during a stretch where the Blue Devils dropped four of five. That being said, he still put up a respectable 12.3 points per game to close the month, but that was far from what he had proven he was capable of during the non-conference and early NEC slate.

In three games since the calendar turned to February, including Thursday’s 81-76 win on the road over New Haven, Smith has averaged 29.7 points per game, headlined by a career-high 40 against the Chargers at the Hazell Center.

“I wake up every day on game day just ready to go and win the game,” Smith said. “This game was just a little different.”

Smith’s recent outburst has, not by coincidence, been mirrored by three CCSU victories. The Blue Devils are certainly much more than just the redshirt sophomore on the offensive end, but having him at his best has seen the team near its best.

“He was in such a groove and a rhythm, we were just calling his number, and after a while, players were just looking for him,” head coach Patrick Sellers said. “Kudos to him, he’s in the gym constantly and nonstop. Tonight, he didn’t feel great, and still ended up with 40 points.”

Hit with the obstacle of having Swiss army knife wing James Jones out with an illness, Sellers counted on Smith even more on the defensive end. Smith felt that same added weight on his shoulder to be a leader on the defensive end, and delivered.

“Overall, for sure, James is a big part of our defense and we had to do a good job in his absence,” Smith said.

Smith scored 18 of his 40 points in the first half, setting the tone early with a quick seven. Since he’s rejuvenated his scoring, quick starts have been a common trend. Jay Rodgers added nine in the first half with some impressive drives to the rim, while reigning NEC Rookie of the Week Roddy Jones knocked down a pair of threes.

What’s more impressive is the defensive job the CCSU bigs did on New Haven big man Andre Pasha in the first half, holding him to a mediocre 2-for-12 from the field in the first 20 minutes.

“In the first half, Jayden Mott, Daniel James and Max (Frazier) did a good job getting their chest into him and making him turn, getting him off balance,” Sellers said.

If you thought the efficiency that Smith had in the first half was impressive, he started the second half with 14 points in just over six minutes before heading to the bench for a breather. During his less than three minutes on the pine, New Haven went on a 8-0 run to trim a 15-point deficit down to seven at 58-51.

When Smith re-entered? An immediate 7-0 run to get the lead back into double digits, headlined by a near logo-triple from Jones, his fourth of the game.

“When we recruited him, I saw him play against Jalen Duren on the Pistons and teams like that, and Roddy would come in the game and bang threes from right inside the NBA line,” Sellers said. “What we’ve been working on with him is his defense, and it's getting better and better.”

New Haven would continue to stick around, getting it as close as four in the final minute, but some timely free throws and a key offensive rebound by rookie Elijah Parker was the difference. At the 1:40 mark, Smith connected on his, at this point, signature turn-around jumper from 12 feet away to hit the 40-point milestone, the first time he’s hit that number in any organized basketball game.

“Darin Smith is very unique because he can get to 15 or 17 (feet from the basket) and, for most players, that’s a bad shot, but for him, it's a great shot,” New Haven head coach Ted Hotaling said. “Sometimes there’s nothing you can do about that.”

For housekeeping, Smith had the first 40-point game for Central Connecticut since Kyle Vinales had 42 at Wagner on February 14, 2013, nearly 13 years to the day.

The win puts CCSU up to 8-5 in the NEC season, tied for second place with Le Moyne, whom the Blue Devils host in a crucial clash on Thursday. Up next for Central is a road trip to Hackensack for a game against FDU on Saturday.

As for the Chargers, their third straight loss drops them to 5-7 in the league. With them not being eligible this year for the NEC Tournament, New Haven only has six games left in its inaugural season at the Division I level, next hosting conference leader LIU on Saturday. 

Winthrop hits century mark in win over Gardner-Webb

By Jacob Conley (@gwujake)

BOILING SPRINGS, N.C. — Gardner-Webb had its second-highest scoring output of the season Thursday, with 85 points.

The only problem was the defense surrendered 103 to Winthrop, falling to the Eagles in a Big South shootout at Paul Porter Arena.

“When you give up 85 on the road, that usually spells trouble,”  Winthrop coach Mark Prosser said. “But tonight, we had our inside-out game working. Logan Duncomb commands so much respect in the post that it opens things up for our shooters, and we were able to make shots tonight.”

Gardner-Webb started out making its first three shots from the floor, and when Colin Hawkins hit a three, the Runnin’ Bulldogs led, 7-4. Kareem Rozier hit a pair of triples for the Eagles, starting an 11-0 run that saw them go in front, 15-7. Jacob Hudson broke the run with a three-point play, but Winthrop could not miss from deep. The Eagles hit their first four shots from beyond the arc. Spence Sims and DJ Jefferson kept GWU close with threes of their own as the Runnin’ Bulldogs only trailed, 22-18.

A steal and layup by Jacob Hogarth brought Gardner-Webb to within 22-20 midway through the half, but Rozier hit two more triples in a 12-0 Eagle run. Jefferson ended the spurt with a three, but Rozier hit another. By the time Rozier hit his fifth trey of the half, Winthrop led, 42-26. Former Bulldog Pharrell Boyogueno added a trifecta, answered by Hudson’s triple. Even so, Winthrop was able to build a 55-35 halftime lead.

Rozier hit another three to open the second half, but GWU made a bit of a push when Hudson hit a pair of free throws and Hogarth threw down a dunk. Ace Talbert hit a pair of threes as the Runnin’ Bulldogs cut the deficit to 63-49 at the under-16 media stoppage. Rozier stopped the bleeding with a three, and the teams began a long stretch of trading baskets.

Hudson cut the deficit to 72-62 with a pair of free throws, but Hogarth picked up his fourth foul on the next trip down the floor. As a result, the Eagles went on a 9-0 run that included five points from Kody Clouet, giving the visitors an 83-62 lead.

“Give GW credit,” Prosser said. “They were the better team for long stretches in the second half. They hustle and are well-coached. When they cut it to ten, we stayed calm in the huddle and were just focused on winning the next war (four-minute segment). I think we ended up winning the next two and that was huge.”

Hogarth came back in the game and hit a jumper, while Navuan Peterson canned a pair of threes. It was not enough, though, as GWU fell 103-85.

THE ROZIER & DUNCOMB SHOW: The duo combined for 57 of Winthrop’s 103 points. In addition, Duncomb collected his 11th double-double of the season, with 14 rebounds to go with 24 points, while Rozier had a game-high 33 points.

BOMBS AWAY; Winthrop hit 18 threes on the night, with Rozier doing most of the work with nine of those. The 18 threes by Winthrop is the most for the Eagles since they hit 17 against Hampton in 2019. GWU was not too shabby from beyond the arc, hitting 11. Both teams shot an identical 51 percent from the floor.

OPPOSITE DIRECTIONS: Winthrop (19-8) has now won 11 games in a row, and sits atop the Big South Conference with the tiebreaker over High Point. Prosser is not watching the standings just yet, though.

“I couldn’t care less at what other teams are doing at this point,” he said. “I’m just happy we got the win because it’s been a while since we won here.”

Meanwhile, the Runnin’ Bulldogs’ struggles continue. They sit in the cellar of the Big South with a 3-21 mark and face another tough task Saturday, hosting High Point at 2 p.m. Winthrop will host USC Upstate the same day at 6:30 p.m.

Austin Peay retains top spot in ASUN after road battle at Queens

 

Austin Peay forward Collin Parker (center) attempts a shot in Wednesday night's victory at Queens. (Photo:  Austin Peay Athletics)

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CHARLOTTE – If numerology is your thing, there were plenty of numbers to enjoy Wednesday night in Charlotte.

32. Five. 21-for-34.

The 32 – worn by Austin Peay’s Collin Parker – easily eclipsed his career-high point total. The five – Rashaud Marshall – backed up his teammate with a 9-for-10 effort of his own. The 21-for-34 came from Queens, which was one of the main points Royals coach Grant Leonard wanted to address after the game.

Austin Peay held serve in Curry Arena, turning away Queens, 95-87, and extending its clutch on the top spot in the ASUN.

“We knew it would be a hard-fought game,” Austin Peay head coach Corey Gipson said after the game. “We knew we had to be the more physical team. And we were.”

Austin Peay (18-6, 12-1 ASUN) asserted its will almost from the opening tip. The Governors ripped off an 11-0 run after Queens took the lead on the first bucket of the game, then pushed the lead as high as 12 on a Parker triple. Queens (14-12, 9-4) gradually whittled away at the lead, snipping it to five on an Avantae Parker bucket at the 5:39 mark of the first half.

The Governors used a 5-0 burst to swell the lead back to 10 a minute later, only for the Royals to clip it to six. Queens then scored 11 of the final 18 points of the half, capped by a Nas Mann jumper at the horn to head to the locker room down 52-50.

Queens charged out of the intermission and landed a haymaker on Austin Peay, delivering a 10-0 killshot run to take a 60-52 advantage buoyed by a pair of Chris Ashby triples. As quickly as the Royals landed the blow, Austin Peay punched back with a killshot run of its own, taking a 62-60 lead. The Royals tied the game on a Jordan Watford jumper but surrendered a 20-8 run from there to put Austin Peay ahead by 12.

“I’ll have to study that stretch to see exactly what happened,” Leonard said. “I thought we came out (in the second half) with great energy. I thought (guard Yoav) Berman’s third foul kind of took some energy away, which was unfortunate. That’s kind of when they went back on their run.”

Austin Peay held Queens at bay through a team defensive effort and strong offense from Parker, Marshall, and others. Gipson had an interesting assessment of how the Governors weathered the storm.

“It’s hard to let the game be boring,” Gipson said. “Our guys really bought into it in the second half. We knew we had to go to a couple of people (on offense) because they would have a mismatch all night long. I thought the second half – and the latter part of the second half – our defense got better, even though it wasn’t predicated off the energy of (our players) getting a touch to score the ball.”

The trading of punches continued, despite the Austin Peay run. Queens responded by halving the Governors’ lead completely keyed by Jordan Watford’s seven points, then using a 7-0 burst to cut it to three on a Watford free throw with 1:38 to play. Austin Peay was able to salt away the game from the line, though, earning the final result in a true battle.

“The fact that we could go on the road and come away with one against a really good team is special,” Gipson said. “At the end of the day, it was just two solid teams getting after each other, making each other better.”

The 21-for-34 number on Leonard’s mind was the final Royal result from the free throw line. Queens had a lot of free throw opportunities circle off, including some in pivotal moments.

“When you’re playing a really good team, the margins are rail-thin,” Leonard said. “There were a couple of categories that I wasn’t really pleased with. Obviously, our free throw shooting kind of went awry. What we’ve got to do is (to) start making our free throws. We can’t go to the line 34 times and make 21, look down, and we’re at 60 percent and they’re at 80 percent, then think we’re going to win a high-stakes game. It’s just not going to happen like that.”

Parker’s 39 points were a career-high for the Govs, with the senior forward hitting 11-of-23 from the field (3-of-5 from distance) and 14-of-17 from the line. Parker’s total was his third 30-point outing in the Govs’ last four games.

“I knew (Parker) was going to be – he only shot 50 percent from the field. But I knew he was going to be good,” Leonard said. “We can’t put him at the foul line that much. The difference in the game was small things. If we want to win a championship, we’ve got to be cleaner.”

Marshall tallied 21, connecting on 9-of-10 from the field. Ja’Corey Robinson added 13 in 24 minutes of reserve duty, hitting 4-of-6 from the field and all five of his free throw tries. The Govs shot 56.1 percent (32-for-57) from the deck, with 35.7 percent (5-of-14) of their tries from distance finding the net. The 80 percent Leonard referenced from the line came on 16-of-19 (84.2 percent) from the stripe. Austin Peay also outrebounded Queens by 10, 38-28.

Watford turned in a career-high of his own, netting 26 in 27 minutes of play off the bench for the Royals. The freshman from nearby Lancaster, S.C., hit 8-of-13 from the field and 8-of-12 from the line.

“Jordan was able to get mismatches and get downhill,” Leonard said. “I was really proud of how he played and I thought he played well enough to put us in a position to win. Jordan keeps getting better and better. I know it’s going to keep happening.”

Four other Royals joined Watford in double figures. Chris Ashby scored 15 on 4-for-10 from the field, with Berman notching 13 on 4-for-9 from the field and 5-for-9 from the line. Mann and Avantae Parker tallied 12 apiece, shooting a combined 9-for-18.

Queens shot 51.6 percent (29-for-56) from the field, with 8-of-22 (36.4 percent) connecting from deep. The Royals shot 61.8 percent (21-for-34) from the line.

Austin Peay returns to F&M Bank Arena in Clarksville, Tenn., to face Bellarmine Saturday afternoon. Tip time is set for 5:30 (Eastern), with ESPN+ handling the coverage. Queens welcomes Lipscomb to Curry Arena Saturday afternoon as the Royals close a small home stand. Tip time is set for 4:00 over ESPN+.

AUSTIN PEAY 95, QUEENS 87

AUSTIN PEAY (18-6, 12-1 ASUN)

McCubbin 3-8 2-2 9, Collins 2-5 2-2 6, Marshall 9-10 3-6 21, Brookshire 1-2 0-0 3, Parker 11-23 14-17 39, Wagner 0-0 0-0 0, Morisch 0-0 0-0 0, Torain 2-3 0-0 4, Robinson 4-6 5-5 13. Totals 32-57 26-32 95.

QUEENS (14-12, 9-4)

Mann 5-11 1-2 12, Parker 4-7 4-8 12, Ashby 4-10 3-3 15, Schwieger 2-4 0-0 4, Berman 4-9 5-9 13, Watford 8-13 8-12 26, Henry 1-1 0-0 2, Larson 0-0 0-0 0, Jabriel 1-1 0-0 3. Totals 29-56 21-34 87.

Halftime:  Austin Peay 52-50. 3-Point goals:  Queens 8-22 (Mann 1-5, Ashby 4-10, Schwieger 0-1, Berman 0-3, Watford 2-2, Jabriel 1-1), Austin Peay 5-14 (McCubbin 1-4, Collins 0-3, Brookshire 1-2, Parker 3-5). Fouled out:  Collins (APSU), Schwieger (QUC).  Rebounds:  Austin Peay 38 (C. Parker/McCubbin 9), Queens 28 (A. Parker 7). Total fouls:  Austin Peay 24, Queens 23. Technicals:  NA.

 

5 Thoughts: Clark leads Seton Hall past Providence

Budd Clark took over in second half, scoring 21 of his 31 points after halftime as Seton Hall capped off season sweep of Providence. (Photo by Seton Hall Athletics)

By Jason Guerette (@JPGuerette)

NEWARK, N.J. — After stumbling down the stretch in Omaha on Saturday and letting a big opportunity slip away, Seton Hall was in need of a bounce back as the Providence Friars came to town for a Wednesday night tipoff in Newark. It essentially amounted to a must-win situation for The Hall’s tournament hopes.

Luckily, the Pirates have Budd Clark, and the Friars don’t.

The junior point guard from Philadelphia dominated, scoring 21 of his 31 points in the second half to power Seton Hall to an 87-80 win at Prudential Center, leveling its Big East record at 7-7.

Here are the 5 Thoughts:

1. Triple Trouble

Creighton’s comeback on Saturday to stun the Pirates was achieved in large part due to the three-point line, as the Bluejays went 3-for-5 down the stretch, plus started their comeback out of the final media timeout by hitting all three shots afforded to them at the free throw line on a cardinal sin (fouling of a three-point shooter, for those not in the know).

That trend unfortunately continued for the Hall in the first half against the Friars, who nailed five of their first six attempts from deep, and proceeded to keep on hitting to the tune of a 9-for-17 mark to lead by four at the break. More than half their shots were from distance in the first 20 minutes, and six different players hit at least one, including recently-converted walk-on Nilavan Daniels.

“We did our job hitting our short roll,” Friars head coach Kim English said after the game. “We sprayed it to our guys, our shooters, and they took and made good shots.”

The second half started the same way, as Providence hit two of its first four shots from distance to up its total to 11-for-21 for the game. The Friars would also hit their final two three-point attempts in the game, but in between those two spurts, the outside makes dried up for the visitors, who went just 1-for-11 from the 17:46 mark of the second half until the 1:54 mark on the clock.

Credit a much-needed adjustment from Seton Hall head coach Shaheen Holloway for some of what tilted the numbers in Seton Hall's favor.

“(In) the first half, we were hard hedging way too high, and they were short rolling and the big guy was catching and just throwing it out for threes,” Holloway said. “The second half, I pushed the big guy back a little bit more, we made the guards get over the screen. I thought that was the big difference.”

The Pirates have been one of the better teams in the Big East at limiting opponents from the three-point line. Like all teams, they have had bad stretches in that regard, but they have usually contained the damage from those spurts, and tonight, being able to thwart the Friars’ deep shooting was one of the key cogs to finally being able to break through after being kept at arm’s length for the majority of the game.

The other reason? Well, he wears 0 on his back.

2. Out..of..this..Woooooooorld

After Providence wrapped him up in the first meeting back in December, allowing the talented point to score just nine points in the game (albeit including the two that sealed the game), Budd Clark potted 10 points before halftime this evening, including a step-back three-pointer that made everyone watching wish he could add to his arsenal on a regular basis.

In the second half, he took over, scoring 21 points in the final 20 minutes to finish with an eye-popping 31 for the game, a total that was one point off his overall career-high of 32 (set at Merrimack) and was also the first 30-point game by any Seton Hall player since Jared Rhoden dropped 30 on Xavier in February of 2022.

It was a sensational performance: Efficient, deadly, and multi-faceted, as Clark also added eight assists to the mix to will his team to victory. It evoked a certain future hall of Famer in English’s eyes.

“Early in the game, we wanted to go under his ball screens,” the Providence skipper said. “(We) did it some early in the game, (but) didn’t do a great job of it in the second half. Late in the game, we tried to blitz him, get the ball out of his hands, (and) did a really poor job of that as well. He was spectacular. I mean, he looked like Chris Paul.”

“I think he’s understanding the mission, understanding what I’ve been preaching to him about making people follow you,” Holloway added. “He’s not vocal, he’s more follow by his actions, but I’ve been on him to be aggressive and don’t let the game come to you. I think he’s doing a better job of that now, understanding that as he goes, we go.”

But even more than that, Clark demonstrated that he could play through foul trouble tonight. He picked up his second personal foul with a little under eight minutes to play in the first half, and Holloway left him on the floor, something he hasn’t done a ton this year. Clark made him look good by playing the ensuing five or so minutes without picking up a third foul leading into halftime. 

Then, he kept right on doing it in the second half after a semi-early third foul, and then a fourth personal foul with around five minutes to play. 

“It’s money time right now,” Holloway said of trusting Clark tonight. “It’s money time, and this is no disrespect to anybody else on our team because everybody’s all good players, but he has such a rhythm going and the team has such a rhythm going. I went with my gut and it paid off.”

Add it all up, and as another Clark some may remember from local sports reports on Channel 7 back in the day would say, Budd was “Out..of..this..Woooooooorld.”

3. Wingmen

No man is an island, and very few basketball players can do it on their own. Tonight, A.J. Staton-McCray and Tajuan Simpkins took turns complimenting Clark's wizardry. 

For the former, he put up 18 big points, knocking down three of eight from three-point range, and helping to keep Providence’s defense from throwing everyone at Clark. He’s been an impactful shooter and scorer this season, but tonight was his highest-scoring effort since dropping 18 points on Rutgers two months ago.

Simpkins was one of the heroes in the first meeting at Providence, scoring 22 in that game (then the most he’d had as a Pirate). Tonight, he had 13 points off the bench, but nine of those 13 came in the second half, yet another critical element that led to Seton Hall breaking through and finally taking the lead for good.

It can be different guys every night for Seton Hall, but Simpkins and Staton-McCray have proven to be the most consistently able to help Clark shoulder the load on offense.

And sometimes, you can get a boost from the most-unlikely sources...

4. Gift from Godswill

It’s been an odd season for sophomore center Godswill Erheriene. It started late due to injury, and one of the few returning Seton Hall players from last season has not really had a chance to get his feet under him.

Having scored two points all season long, he was called upon at the 12:15 mark in the second half with Stephon Payne a bit banged up and Najai Hines having an off night, and he delivered one of the most unexpected lifts of the season for The Hall, scoring six points with a pair of rebounds in eight minutes.

His points were also impactful, with his first basket making a one-point Seton Hall lead three points, and his second (an and-1 off an offensive rebound) turning a two-point edge into four points. His final two points came at the free throw line, where Erheriene (a 30 percent career shooter from the charity stripe) made both ends of a 1-and-1, making a two-possession game a three-possession game.

“He works hard in practice,” Staton-McCray said after the game. “We just have to keep instilling confidence in him. He came out there, and he did what he had to do today. I’m happy for him, for real."

“When you’ve got good, positive energy, that’s contagious,” Holloway said. “(Godswill)’s such a great young man, everybody’s cheering for him, I’m cheering for him. I thought it was big, but like I said, for me — and you guys are different — I expect him to do this, right? Because he did it at a high level last year, meaning, as a freshman, he played a lot. So I expect him to play, and when he doesn’t, that’s when I get disappointed. Like, I’m disappointed because he doesn’t say, ‘put me in, Coach!’ It’s just more like, ‘Steph’s playing good, Najai’s learning.’ I need him to get that fire, and hopefully tonight starts something good for him, and for us.”

5. Every Game Matters

The loss at Creighton on Saturday essentially eliminated any margin for error Seton Hall had coming down the stretch. The Pirates have two remaining chances for a Quad 1 victory: At UConn, and home against St. John’s. Both will be extremely difficult to get, but they are still there ahead of the Pirates on the schedule.

They also can’t afford slip-ups in games like tonight, nor their remaining home games against DePaul and Georgetown, and not really even against Butler and Xavier on the road. It’s a critical and long stretch run for this Pirates team that came roaring into the new year, and if there’s one lesson to be learned, both Clark and Staton-McCray alluded to it after the game tonight.

“It’s going to be a tough game every night,” Clark said. “Just gotta be ready, and tie our laces tight.”

“Every game matters, so you have to come out with that mentality every game,” Staton-McCray added. “No days off.”

Seton Hall will look to take momentum into the weekend, with a trip to Butler on tap for Saturday and revenge on its mind from a loss to the Bulldogs in Newark a few weeks back.

Sha Sounds Off: Providence

On Budd Clark:

“I think he’s understanding the mission, understanding what I’ve been preaching to him about making people follow you. He’s not vocal, he’s more follow by his actions, but I’ve been on him to be aggressive and don’t let the game come to you. Be aggressive and have people run with you, and if they don’t run, then think, ‘oh.’ I think he’s doing a better job of that now, understanding that as he goes, we go.”

On Clark versus other point guards he coached:

“I don’t know if it’s kind of fair to do that, right? Because everybody’s kind of different, right? When I’m watching him at times, it’s not fair to both of them, but it kind of reminds me of Jordan Theodore, just with the quickness. Obviously, Jordan could shoot it better, but just with the quickness and could be able to get to the basket. Jordan had a really good pull-up game, so I think he’s probably one of the guys, but they’re different, right? Budd is understanding the league more now coming from the MAAC and starting to play, even the Big East, understanding how it’s physical and how you’ve gotta pick and choose your spots, right? But I like where he’s at from a mental standpoint, just being aggressive.”

On Godswill Erheriene:

“Godswill had good reps the last couple days. Steph got hurt the last game and didn’t practice none this week, I wasn’t sure he was gonna play until this morning. We put him through a tryout this morning, a workout this morning, so Godswill had really good reps the last two days and I thought it was good for him, it was good for us. I know he could do these things, right? He did it for us last year. Now it’s up to him to do it. Sometimes he just takes a step back. He’s such a great young man, like, he ain’t got no tiger in him, right? Sometimes he’s just like, ‘okay, these two guys are playing, I’ll just play my role.’ I want him to take more of a stance and say, ‘no, I’ve been here, I know what I want,’ and he’s not doing that on a consistent basis.”

On Clark playing through foul trouble:

“On occasion? It’s money time right now. It’s money time, and this is no disrespect to anybody else on our team because everybody’s all good players, but he has such a rhythm going and the team has such a rhythm going. I went with my gut and it paid off. Did I answer the question? I was kind of all over the place.”

On Erheriene affecting bench production:

“Energy is contagious, right? And when you’ve got good, positive energy, that’s contagious. Like I said, he’s such a great young man, everybody’s cheering for him, I’m cheering for him. I thought it was big, but like I said, for me — and you guys are different — I expect him to do this, right? Because he did it at a high level last year, meaning, as a freshman, he played a lot. So I expect him to play, and when he doesn’t, that’s when I get disappointed. Like, I’m disappointed because he doesn’t say, ‘put me in, Coach!’ It’s just more like, ‘Steph’s playing good, Najai’s learning.’ I need him to get that fire, and hopefully tonight starts something good for him, and for us.”

On bouncing back after losing at Creighton:

“Yeah, it was tough, it was a tough loss. Our locker room wasn’t great. That’s why I didn’t come out for radio, I had to make sure I took care of those guys. Our locker room was a mess as far as our guys, emotions were all over the place. So we took Sunday off, then everybody kind of got their thoughts together, gathered their thoughts, came back, watched the last five minutes, learned from it and had two good, two solid days of practice. We got a chance to practice down here yesterday, and that was great for us. It was really, really, really good for us, and then we came in against a good Providence team. I told you guys that the first time around, this team is dangerous. They could really score the basketball, they’re finally healthy now, so this was a good win for us.”

On Seton Hall’s character:

“One thing you know about my team, Jerry, we’re gonna play hard. And we went out and played great every night. It may not look pretty, but we’re gonna play hard and I thought we played hard in the first half. When you make nine threes, that’s kind of what happened, and then we made some adjustments. You can’t be boneheaded as a coach, right? So the first half, we were hard hedging way too high, and they were short rolling and the big guy was catching and just throwing it out for threes. The second half, I pushed the big guy back a little bit more, we made the guards get over the screen. That’s kind of one of our Achilles’ heels, make the guards get over the screens and they have those short rolls and passes. I thought that was the big difference.”

On Kadary Richmond making it to the NBA and how it might help Seton Hall in recruiting:

“It’s a tough one, J. It’s a tough one because I don’t know what…well, good for him. That’s the first thing, that’s good for Kooks. I’m happy for him. I didn’t know that, so that’s good for him. Second, I don’t know what people consider. Like, is he…like with the portal, it’s so messed up, right? So like, do we say 10-day contract for a Seton Hall guard or do I say 10-day contract for a St. John’s guard? Like, I don’t know. I’m happy for him, I’m really, really happy for him. He’s a good kid — excuse me, good young man. Does that help us? I don’t know. That’s a tough question, man. It’s a tough one, I don’t know how to answer this one. I’m happy for him, though. If it helps us, great. The more, the better. But the portal is so messed up. I’m sure St. John’s fans will say that he’s from there, right? I don’t know. And maybe Syracuse will say he’s from there, because seriously, you don’t know.”

Jerry Carino: “But you developed him!”

Sha: “I can’t. Jerry, I’m happy for the young man, that’s tremendous for him and his family. He played a big part for me, a big part for Seton Hall, he won the NIT championship, so kudos to him. If it helps us, great. Yeah, that’s a tough question, man. You guys, man. I don’t know how to even answer that, like I can’t win with that answer.”

Don’t look now, but Mount St. Mary’s could be on a timely roll heading to AC

Arlandus Keyes (2) is helping shoot Mount St. Mary’s back toward top of MAAC standings as Mountaineers gear up for conference title defense. (Photo by Mount St. Mary’s Athletics) 

NEW ROCHELLE, N.Y. — Last season, Mount St. Mary’s languished in the middle of the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference pack before a timely surge in February and March led to eight wins in its final 11 regular-season games.

The Mountaineers would then power through the MAAC tournament, taking out three of the top four seeds before a win in the First Four for the conference’s first major postseason tournament win since Saint Peter’s Cinderella run to a regional final in 2022.

Like many other mid-major programs, a majority of The Mount’s roster was ravaged by the transfer portal, forcing somewhat of a fresh start and a longer adjustment period. But now sitting 7-8 in league play, head coach Donny Lind believes it may just be starting to come together at an opportune time for the reigning MAAC champion.

“We’ve got a really good team,” he said after Saturday’s win at Iona, a rematch of last year’s conference title showdown. “We’ve got really good people. We dealt with a lot of injuries and a lot of different lineups early in the year, but I think guys are starting to figure out how their best strengths fit in with the other guys. When that happens, guys can play really free and not worry about their rotations and their minutes, and just give us what they’ve got. Hopefully we’re starting to come together even more.”

Lind, a former Shaka Smart assistant now in his second season at the helm in Emmitsburg, has injected some of the core VCU personality into his program. No further was that evident than in the second half against Iona, where Arlandus Keyes and Abdou Khadre Kebe hustled for loose balls and embodied the relentlessness that far too often gets taken for granted in northern Maryland.

“That’s who we have to be,” Lind said of the boundless energy. “We’ve got guys that are that way, but a lot of times, it’s not always cool to dive for a loose ball, it’s not always cool to scrape your knees and get cut up. When our guys are willing to do that, it just shows how much you care about your team. That fires me up when guys are willing to sacrifice their bodies, sacrifice their minutes, sacrifice their shots for their teammates.”

“Arlandus had one first, and then AK had one that reminded me of Briante Weber when we were at VCU. They tried to roll it, and he came in, just dove and took it. That sort of effort is what it takes to go on the road and win close games.”

A deceptively lethal senior shooter, Keyes has helped fill the void left by Carmelo Pacheco in The Mount’s backcourt. The St. Louis-area native had a coming-out party in last year’s MAAC tournament, when he scored 38 points and made nine three-pointers en route to a conference championship. This year has yielded more of the same for a Mountaineer team that prefers an inside-out approach with Trey Deveaux, Luke McEldon and Justin Amadi kicking out to the likes of Keyes and Xavier Lipscomb to anchor the backcourt.

“He’s a really good player, he’s a really good shooter,” Lind said of Keyes. “He’s really hard on himself, he holds himself to a really high standard for his game, and he’s starting to reap some of the benefits of all that hard work he’s put in.”

However, it is Kebe who should be generating more attention. Now fully recovered from a broken wrist suffered just before the season, the 6-foot-7 sophomore from Senegal is making a claim to be one of the best players in the conference.

“He’s earned what he’s gotten,” Lind remarked. “He’s just grown in his confidence and his understanding of what he’s asked to do, and he’s a rare guy in today’s day and age. He’s not concerned with how many points he scores, he truly isn’t. He understands that he provides so much value doing the other things that if he does those, I’ll never take him off the floor. And if he does those things, then he’ll score inevitably because he’s a good player and he’s talented, and he plays really hard. The ball rewards guys like that.”

“He really defends. He just changes the opponent’s game plan, and that is special. At 6-foot-7, he can guard one through four, sometimes one through five depending on what the five man is like, and he brings an energy and a defensive intensity, and an ability to rebound the ball that is really unique. If he’s making shots, he’s damn near an NBA player at his size and athleticism, but he’s got a lot of growing to do to continue to develop. But he’s playing with a ton of confidence right now, and he’s earned that.”

Iona head coach Dan Geriot, who watched Kebe pull down 16 rebounds as The Mount wrapped up a season sweep of the Gaels, concurred.

“He shows off his versatility, man,” Geriot said, tipping his cap. “That guy can make a gym electric and make a gym silent.”

Mount St. Mary’s has five games remaining, and a favorable schedule with Rider, Niagara and Canisius — the MAAC’s bottom three teams — next up before closing the regular season at Sacred Heart and Fairfield. A late run to a first-round bye in Atlantic City could once again be in the cards for The Mount, but regardless of how the hand is dealt, the coach at the table is confident in walking away with a payout.

“I’m super encouraged,” Lind said. “Regardless of who we play, I’m encouraged. I think we’re getting better. We didn’t play very well for 10 minutes at the beginning of the second half against Merrimack (February 5), we played some of our worst basketball of the season. It’s gonna happen from time to time. I was really proud of how we responded. We could have dropped that game at home and gone in the tank. A lot of teams do, and we didn’t. We responded and said, ‘hey, it’s one game.’ Our focus and our energy told me that we were gonna be just fine.”

Kevin Willard quote book: Marquette

On fighting back and finding ways to win:

“It’s February basketball. You’re gonna have to grind and find ways to win. Watching Marquette’s last five games, Shaka’s done a great job with that group, especially on the defensive end. But we found a way, so that’s all that matters.”

On free throw shooting:

“Oh, man! We’re gonna work, and we have worked on it. Everyone’s in there every day, it’s not like we’re not doing it. I think it’s a little mental right now. I think we missed one and it’s like, we’ve just got a little bit too much negative emotion right now on the free throw line. I gotta change that somehow. We’ll get there. Again, if we can improve our free throw shooting and make a couple layups in the first half, it’s a totally different game. We held them to 32 points, we should have had 44 points, and then it’s a different type of game. We’ll get there. (Acaden’s) shooting 200 extra (free throws) a day, every day. It’s not like we’re not working on it. I think (Tyler) never misses a free throw in practice. A little bit is freshman nerves, a lot of young guys shooting free throws for the first time in pressure situations. I think I have a lot of confidence in these guys as we go through February and get into March, that they’ll make them.”

On Tyler Perkins:

“I don’t think Perk played very well, and that’s giving him a huge compliment because, how many points did you have? He had 22 points and I don’t think he played well. And that’s how much of a high standard I have for him, so that’s a compliment.”

On finding ways to win with offensive rebounding:

“That’s the other thing I think we can really improve, is being a better offensive rebound team and being a much better defensive rebound team. I thought we did a better job on the defensive glass. We had a big breakdown with (Royce) Parham, I thought Parham played great late in the game, but I think it’s — again — this time of year, I’m harping on all our things that we can get better at and trying to keep everything going. And I think we can get much better at rebounding.”

On the value of tonight’s win:

“It’s a win in February, man. I’ll take any win in February, especially the second time you play a team. That’s what’s so great about this league, in my opinion, is you get everybody on a true round robin, where, coming from the Big Ten, I might see UCLA twice in three years. You’re seeing everybody twice, and for a new team, trying to get them to understand that is a little bit different. The mentality (of), ‘oh, we beat them on the road, we’re just gonna come home and win,’ it’s so much different in this league because there’s really good coaching, really good players. But you see everybody twice, so it’s that much harder to win the second time.”

On Bryce Lindsay:

“He’s gonna get going. It’s a little mental. I talked to the team earlier, before the game, about staying in the moment, talking to each other, not worrying about the past or not worrying about the future, just trying to stay in the present. And sometimes it’s hard when you’re not playing well to kind of stay in the moment. I have a lot of confidence in Bryce. He’s in the gym with me every day working and he’s gonna get it. And I thought he had some good opportunities tonight. It’s just when you’re struggling the way he’s struggling, sometimes you just need one, get a good bounce or bank one in. I told him to sleep on the other side of the bed tonight, so sometimes you just gotta try something different.”

On taking Lindsay out of the starting lineup:

“No. Bryce has been consistent, he’s still doing a lot of good things and people have to guard him. I love Dev coming off the bench. It’s like a really good security blanket for me, I think it’s a good role for him and I think, again, Acaden and Bryce have worked well together all year. I have the utmost confidence in them and I know one of these days, it’s gonna break loose.”

On Perkins’ game-winning block:

“Sometimes when I get him off the ball in some things, he can get a little lost, but he’s really good on the ball, locked in. I thought (Marquette) did a good job switching, they ghosted him. He did a good job of staying, Perk did a really good job of staying on (Adrien) Stevens. They ran a nice little ghost play, I thought they both defended at a very high level.”

On playing at a faster tempo:

“You know the difference between the 20th-fastest team and us? It’s 1.6 seconds. I have a young team, and when we get up, I’m gonna control the ball, take the air out of the ball. That’s one of the reasons why our tempo is so low. If you watch anytime we’ve gotten up more than 12 (points), I’ve taken the air out of the ball. We’ve run the clock down. One of the easiest ways to lose leads is (to) take quick shots, so I have purposely taken the air out of the ball at least 11 games, where in the last nine minutes of the game, we’ve had four shot clock violations, which I love. And everyone’s like, ‘you’re nuts.’ It takes 30 seconds (off the clock), it sets up our defense. The worst thing you do is come down, just jack up a shot with two seconds on the shot clock, long rebound, your defense isn’t set. So I’d rather have a shot clock violation, set my defense up, have them work for 25 seconds and then take 30 seconds, and the game’s over. It’s not like the NBA with 24 seconds. A 30-second shot clock is monstrous, so I think we play pretty fast. It’s not like (Acaden) walks the ball up, it’s not like we’re ever walking the ball up. It’s just 1.6 seconds. Everyone gets stuck on that tempo shit. It’s bullshit.”

On what has impressed him most in Big East play:

“I think we’ve matured a lot. Again, (Acaden’s) playing like one of the best point guards in the country, Perk has, I think, gone from a guy that was a reserve last year to a guy that we rely on heavily. Matt Hodge…I just think their growth has been really fun to watch. They’re a great group to be around, they work hard, they have a great attitude. And to put ourselves with ten wins and only three losses in Big East play right now, it’s not me. It’s these guys with their attitude and how hard they work. It really is. This is a group that really is, in today’s era of college basketball, and switching jobs and putting a roster together, this team’s been absolutely great to coach. If we just made our free throws, I’d love them to death, but right now, they’re just fun to coach.”

On taking the air out of the ball:

“I don’t think we slowed it down, that’s not what I mean now. Taking the air out of the ball, I’ve done that historically. You get up 14, 16, and you’re playing against really, really good teams, clock management is ideal. Ask Selton Miguel how he feels about it. Selton last year, he would curse me out after the game, I mean, full-out. And then it took him 27 games to finally figure out that maybe not coming down (and) jacking up a three is the right thing to do when we were the (No. 9) team in the country. And Selly’s one of my favorites of all time, but he would curse me out after the game because he would kind of limit stats a little bit, but at the same time.”

On similarities between Perkins and Josh Hart:

“I did not compare him to Josh Hart. I got a phone call. These guys listen to these press conferences! He definitely reminds me a little bit of Josh, he does. He affects the game. Again, once he figures out he can affect the game without shooting and having to shoot, that’s when he’s gonna take a monster step. And I think he’s starting to get there, he is. He had a big offensive rebound in the first half, obviously he had a couple threes, but had a big deflection in the second half. Again, getting players to understand how important…Josh is starting for the New York Knicks. I played against him for four years, and I tell a story all the time: One of the last times we played against him, I called timeout and I cursed out my team, and I was like, ‘can somebody please stop Josh Hart?’ And he hadn’t taken a shot yet, he hadn’t taken a shot. And they’re all looking at me like, ‘well, he’s not shooting.’ I’m like, ‘well, he’s got three steals, he’s got four offensive rebounds, he’s got five assists.’ And he didn’t take a shot, and that’s why he’s in the NBA. (Tyler) can do that. He just has to figure it out, like at times, I don’t need to shoot the ball to be out here and be effective, because he does so many other things.”

On keeping players out of foul trouble:

“I think that’s something. We’ve been pretty good, I think we lead the league in least foulouts, so we’ve been pretty good at keeping them out there. I like to play, I’m not afraid to play guys with two fouls in the first half. I think it’s something that sometimes you pick up two and they sit on the bench, they get mad. I think that’s one of the keys to this team, is that we are deep. I have a lot of faith in my bench, so if guys do get in foul trouble, I think one of the ways we’ve kept them out is that the guys coming off the bench have done a really good job.”

On Devin Askew:

“Dev’s been phenomenal. He’s been a workhorse and I think more than anything, just his leadership has been off the charts. Dev’s a great leader.”

On the rumors of playing Notre Dame in Rome next season:

“I have no comment. Thank you. Is everybody good? I have no comment. I do know how to say that sometimes!”

Johnnies grind out OT win over Xavier, but Pitino more impressed with his son than his team’s effort

Richard Pitino (left) greets his father, Rick, before Xavier faced St. John’s Monday. Red Storm defeated Musketeers in overtime, but elder Pitino was more impressed with his son’s coaching than his own Johnnies. (Photo by the Cincinnati Enquirer)

NEW YORK — When you win over 900 games and a pair of national championships in a career that spans over a half-century, chances are you do not impress easily.

Rick Pitino fits that mold, and did so again Monday after his St. John’s team needed overtime to escape a game Xavier unit that nearly upended the Red Storm two weeks prior on the Musketeers’ home floor in Cincinnati.

However, this is Rick Pitino, the coach. Rick Pitino, the father, is an entirely different story.

The duality of man came into play again at Madison Square Garden Monday night, as opposing Rick on the sideline was his son, Richard, now more than halfway through his first season at the reins of a Xavier program still acclimating itself to life without Sean Miller. The junior Pitino is 12-12 in the Queen City after leaving New Mexico to take a job opposite his father in the Big East Conference. A well-traveled coach in his own right at just 43 years of age — Richard has already coached at Florida International and Minnesota as well — his initial go-round with the Musketeers started with a near-upset against Marist before gaining steam in non-conference play and now twice coming seconds away from earning bragging rights in the family for a second time (Richard’s New Mexico team defeated Rick’s Iona team in 2022).

After Monday’s 87-82 battle, one that saw Xavier push the 17th-ranked Johnnies to the limit before three of its players fouled out in overtime, Richard left more of an impression on his counterpart than the players that got Rick his 904th career victory.

“I’m real excited with the victory, but I’m more proud of my son,” the elder Pitino remarked. “Because in two games against (Xavier), he’s totally outcoached me and their staff outcoached us. We could not guard them and we could not stop them in their offense. They’ve outplayed us twice, but we just gutted it out in the final minutes to come away with a victory, which good teams do. So I’m disappointed in our defense, but very proud of my son.”

Xavier, which had St. John’s on the ropes with a 16-point second-half lead on January 24, overcame early foul trouble for forwards Tre Carroll and Jovan Milicevic, as well as point guard Malik Messina-Moore, three of six Musketeers with two or more fouls in a first half that somehow ended in a 42-all tie.

Richard deftly navigated the foul situation in the second stanza, shuffling Carroll and Milicevic out of the lineup consistently, relying on Filip Borovicanin and Anthony Robinson — the latter of whom had not made a field goal in Big East play before Monday — to stem the tide against the imposing trio of St. John’s bigs in Zuby Ejiofor, Bryce Hopkins and Dillon Mitchell. Xavier tried valiantly to stay with the physical Johnnies, but was worn down by the pressure defense and inability to create in the paint more than the 41-17 disparity in free throw attempts.

“They were just ramping up the physicality,” Richard Pitino said of St. John’s. “We weren’t able to get to the rim, we weren’t able to get to the free throw line, 28-for-41 for them, 9-for-17 (for us). To even be in overtime is pretty remarkable.”

“They’re great kids (who) really believe in what we’re building. We’re obviously trying to get to the level of UConn, trying to get to the level of St. John’s, but you can’t have 28 (made) free throws to nine and think you’re gonna win the game. We had a chance.”

The younger Pitino’s coaching pedigree has been questioned somewhat as he has found his way skippering his own yacht and emerging from the large shadow cast by his hall of fame father. But through the Big East season so far, it is almost impossible to argue that he has come the closest to defeating St. John’s since the Red Storm’s sole conference loss on January 3 against Providence. Rick’s Johnnies have won ten straight games since then, but only one team has played them to single digits twice, that being the Xavier group that almost shocked the Garden on Monday. Richard was asked what made the difference, and hinted at floor spacing and ball handling especially.

“I think our spacing has been pretty good against them,” he said. “Until the end, execution-wise, it wasn’t great, but we took care of the basketball. I don’t know how many turnovers we had at our place, but you have to rebound the ball and you have to not turn the ball over to beat them.”

It has also been suspected and speculated in some circles that the son will eventually replace the father whenever Rick decides to call it a career or leave St. John’s for whatever reason. That decision is nowhere near the realm of possibility yet, but what can be drawn from Monday’s conclusion is that wherever Richard coaches in the future, be it at Xavier or anyplace else, he earned a resonant endorsement.

“I hope we don’t play them in the Big East tournament,” Rick said of Xavier. “Like I said, I think my son’s brilliant. I’m proud of him. I hate getting any milestone against him (Rick surpassed Roy Williams on the all-time wins list Monday), but I go away tonight saying my son’s a hell of a coach. And I’m much prouder than 900, 1,000, 1,100. To say my son’s a great coach is much more pleasing to me than any number of victories.”

Defense leads way for Stony Brook as Seawolves sweep Northeastern

By Zachary Wilson (@zwilsonpxp)

STONY BROOK, N.Y. — Coming off a loss that snapped a five-game conference win streak, Stony Brook rebounded at home in front of a good crowd, including kids from the local children’s hospital as part of Children’s Hospital Day at Stony Brook Arena.

To start things off, Stony Brook won the tipoff, and 15 seconds later, a shooting foul was drawn by Richard Goods despite missing both free attempts afterwards. The shooting was stone cold in the first few minutes of the game, especially for Stony Brook, who missed its first five shot attempts, while both sides did not produce a single point in the first three minutes, until Northeastern struck first with back-to-back threes from Mike Loughnane and JB Frankel.

Then out of the first media timeout, the Seawolves would get on the board from Rob Brown III’s layup, then Tomas Valeninty’s triple made it a 6-5 Northeastern lead by the next media timeout. Before that, the Seawolves’ defense would hold the Huskies scoreless for over five minutes, forcing three turnovers.

After Loughnane got a fast-break layup off a Ryan Williams block, Stony Brook would go on an 8-0 run to pick up its first lead of the game, capped off by an Ethan Simmon three to make it 13-8 with 7:55 remaining in the first half.

Another scoring drought and turnover issue would befall the Huskies, as they would commit six turnovers in over nine minutes while being held without a single point in over three minutes. Along with that, they would lose a timeout on an unsuccessful challenge where the initial call was the ball going out of bounds off Northeastern, which led to Jonah Butler making both shots at the free throw line thereafter.

Despite allowing Stony Brook to hit the double bonus by the 6:56 mark of the first half and a 14-point lead at one point, the Huskies would hold their own for the remainder of the half by keeping Erik Pratt, one of the leading scorers in the CAA, scoreless for most of the frame. Frankel’s back-to-back shots from downtown made the score 29-19 in favor of Stony Brook at halftime, and gave him a game-high nine points after 20 minutes of action.

At the beginning of the second half, Goods would launch a three the first of many spectacular plays he would make for the Seawolves over the next 20 minutes. His triple would eventually be followed by a huge transition play by the Seawolves, starting with Quin Gorman’s block on Loughnane to Andrej Shoshkikj’s layup off Brown’s pass to put the Seawolves up, 36-21.

More theatrics by Stony Brook would be created in between a media timeout, including Pratt breaking the ankles of his defender for a downtown shot, then Shoshkikj lobbing the ball to Goods for a dunk that brought the arena to its knees.

Another challenge would fall on the Seawolves, as Pratt picked up his third foul with 13:34 remaining. After Loughnane got a layup off a steal, Shoshkikj answered with a drive to the basket for a layup and a foul on Luca Soroa Schaller to complete the three-point play, increasing the Seawolves' lead to 48-30.

The advantage would continue over the next few minutes, as the Seawolves put Petar Pinter into foul trouble with his fourth foul committed halfway through the second half. Then, Goods would slam the ball into the basket once again off of Simmon’s toss into the paint, giving Stony Brook its largest lead of the game, 57-38.

Despite a six-point run by the Huskies to come to within 13, the Seawolves would keep momentum on their side by drawing fouls on the next two possessions, maintaining a 61-44 lead with under four minutes to play.

Goods would get one more dunk in the second half from Shoshkikj to ice the game and give Stony Brook a 69-55 win over Northeastern, the lowest amount of points by the Huskies in a game this season. The win also gave the Seawolves a season sweep of Northeastern for the second time in three years, and moved them into a tie for third place in the CAA standings with Hofstra and Drexel.

Pratt would once again lead the team in points with 13, while Loughnane led all scorers with 17. The Seawolves’ defense would also hold the Huskies to only 33 percent shooting from the field and 25 from deep, while Stony Brook would shoot 48 percent from the field.

Coming up next, Stony Brook (15-10, 7-5 CAA) goes back on the road Thursday to face CAA preseason favorite Towson (13-12, 5-7 CAA), while Northeastern (6-17, 2-10 CAA) returns home the same day to host William & Mary (15-9, 6-6 CAA) to try and end its six-game losing streak.