Quinnipiac falls to Merrimack in low-scoring defensive affair

Kevair Kennedy (5) led Merrimack with 24 points as Warriors defeated Quinnipiac to maintain two-game lead atop MAAC standings. (Photo by Merrimack Men’s Basketball)

By Connor Wilson (@Conman_815)

HAMDEN, Conn. — With the month of February officially past its halfway point, postseason play in college basketball is quickly approaching, perhaps even closer than you may think.

In March, the teams that can wear down their opponents with physicality and win close games are usually the teams that end up advancing in their conference tournaments and beyond. It may not always be the prettiest product, but once winning time comes, all that matters is coming out on top.

Sunday’s MAAC clash between Quinnipiac and Merrimack at M&T Bank Arena gave us a pretty good preview of what is to come, with two teams fighting for their lives in a one-bid conference, treating every possession like it was their last.

It was the visiting Warriors that were able to win the dogfight by a score of 56-49, behind some timely shotmaking from MAAC Rookie of the Year frontrunner Kevair Kennedy. Despite getting doubled up on the glass, Merrimack was able to find a way to pull it out.

“That was a rockfight,” Quinnipiac head coach Tom Pecora said. “I said to our guys, ‘let's get them again in the finals or semis and make a few shots, and it will be a different world.’”

Merrimack came out of the gates firing, knocking down three triples before the first media timeout. Little did they and everyone know that the Warriors would hit just four more field goals from the first-half U16 to the second-half U16, something that felt unprecedented after the hot start.

“The guys have just bought in to the final score,” Merrimack head coach Joe Gallo said. “Every year, I tell my guys with seven or eight games to go that their stats aren’t going to change much unless you have a 40-point game or something, so the only thing that should matter is the final score.”

Even with those extreme struggles in the first half scoring the ball for the Warriors, Quinnipiac was unable to build any sort of substantial lead of its own due to the suffocating 2-3 zone from the visitors. What the Bobcats were able to do, however, was rebound the basketball. Quinnipiac was plus-18 on the glass in the first half, and had 16 offensive rebounds.

“When you hold a team to 34 percent (shooting) and outrebound them by over 20, you usually win,” Pecora said. “But because they’re such a hybrid in the way they play, they are comfortable like that.”

The Quinnipiac stars had very lackluster afternoons from the field. Amarri Monroe and Jaden Zimmerman combined to shoot 5-for-27 overall and 1-for-9 from three with 10 turnovers. That one three, drilled early in the second half by Zimmerman, was the lone triple that the Bobcats hit all game.

Down the stretch, a 9-0 run for the Warriors right around the midpoint of the second half proved to be the difference. Sixth man KC Ugwuakazi fueled the run with six points and some big-time slams. He also swatted six shots, controlling the area around the basket.

Quinnipiac continued to struggle against the zone, even after snapping its scoring skid with a basket from Keith McKnight. Over the final 14 minutes, the Bobcats could only muster 14 points, surrendering 29. 

“I thought we got great looks inside the zone,” Pecora said. “We missed a lot of elbow jumpers, missed a couple layups, and it kind of bit us in the tail a little bit.”

Kennedy and Tye Dorset iced the game in the closing minute at the foul line as Merrimack was able to escape with a hard-fought win, while Quinnipiac saw its four-game winning streak snapped.

“We needed a game like that before March, so when it presents itself, which I guarantee it will, we’ll be ready for it,” Gallo said.

Looking bigger picture, the Warriors are in the driver’s seat to win their first MAAC regular-season title since joining the league with a 14-2 record, while the Bobcats end the day in fourth place in the league with an uphill battle for second place, 1.5 games behind Saint Peter’s with Siena in the middle.

“I told them that we have to win out now and try and battle for second place so we can get that bye,” Pecora said. “We’ll see what the next couple of weeks bring.”

Up next, Quinnipiac has a much-needed bye on Friday before returning to action on Sunday at home against Fairfield. Merrimack returns to North Andover for a pair of home games on Friday against Siena and Sunday against Iona.