FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
March 2, 2014
Top seeds Saint Anselm College and Southern Connecticut State University will host Wednesday's semifinal contests of the 2014 Northeast-10 Conference Men's Basketball Championship, as both programs earned quarterfinal victories Sunday afternoon.
Saint Anselm held off fifth-seeded Bentley University, 79-78, in an Oscar worthy finish, while So. Connecticut, ranked No. 6 in the nation, defeated fourth-seeded Southern New Hampshire University, 75-63.
Saint Anselm will now host second-seeded University of New Haven in Wednesday's semifinals after the Chargers defeated third-seeded Saint Michael's College, 83-65, on Sunday.
Also on Wednesday, So. Connecticut will welcome third-seeded Le Moyne College, which upset second-seeded Franklin Pierce University Sunday on the road by a convincing 73-59 final.
Both semifinal contests and the final will be broadcast at no cost at northeast10.tv. Also be sure to follow the Northeast-10 on Twitter (@TheNortheast10) for all the latest news and updates.
For complete championship results and box scores, please see below.
#1 NE Saint Anselm 79, #5 NE Bentley 78
MANCHESTER, N.H. – Visiting Bentley, which had been down by 14 points at halftime, owned a 78-77 lead and owned possession with 13 seconds remaining on Sunday at Saint Anselm. But a miscommunication on the inbound play led to a Bentley turnover and go-ahead jumper from Saint Anselm junior Roy Mabrey 11 seconds left, giving the host Hawks a one-point lead.
Bentley had a chance to win or tie it down the other end, but senior Jasper Grassa's layup rimmed out as time expired, ending things in heartbreaking fashion for the Falcons.
Saint Anselm junior Chris Santo had a 12-point, 11-rebound performance for the Hawks, while sophomore Mike McCahey had 20 points and seven rebounds. Senior John Neilsen added 18 and Mabrey had 17.
Bentley sophomore Tyler McFarland had 20 points and eight boards in the loss, while Grassa finished with 16 points and four rebounds.
#1 SW So. Connecticut 75, #4 NE Southern New Hampshire 63
NEW HAVEN, Conn. – The sixth-ranked and top-seeded Owls got 25 points from junior Tylon Smith and 19 from senior and Northeast-10 Player of the Year Greg Langston in Sunday's win over the visiting Penmen.
So. Connecticut improves to 25-2 overall on the season, as the Owls will now host the Northeast-10 Championship game should they prove victorious Wednesday night.
So. New Hampshire outscored the Owls by four in the second half, but not nearly enough to overcome a 16-point first-half deficit. The Penmen got 15 points and nine rebounds in 25 minutes off the bench from rookie Chris Walters, while senior Mike Stys had 14. Sophomore Rodney Sanders added nine points and 12 boards.
#2 SW New Haven 83, #3 NE Saint Michael's 65
NEW HAVEN, Conn. – Northeast-10 Defensive Player of the Year Eric Anderson helped lead New Haven to victory on Sunday, totaling 19 points (9-13 FG) and 19 rebounds (eight offensive) in a game that saw all five Chargers starters score in double figures.
New Haven senior Jeffery Adkins had 19 points and six assists, while fellow senior Justin Exum had 13 points and five boards.
Saint Michael's fell to 18-9 on the season with the loss and now awaits a possible at-large bid to the NCAA Tournament field. On Sunday, the Purple Knights, who do not a senior on their roster, received 17 points from junior Mike Thompson, while junior Corey Crawford II added 16.
#3 SW Le Moyne 73, #2 NE Franklin Pierce 59
RINDGE, N.H. – Sunday's lone upset came from Le Moyne on the road at Franklin Pierce, as the Dolphins got out to a 41-29 halftime lead en route to the win. Sophomore Connor Mahoney had a game-high 22 points and six rebounds in the victory, while 6-foot-11 grad student center Jim Janson registered 18 points and nine rebounds. Senior Nate Champion added 10 points, seven rebounds and eight assists.
Junior Ryen Vilmont led the way for the Ravens with 17 points, seven boards and four assists. Senior Ellis Cooper added 13 points and six rebounds for Franklin Pierce, which shot just 36 percent.
Despite the loss, Franklin Pierce was ranked second in the latest East Regional rankings, and now awaits a possible NCAA at-large bid.
The Northeast-10 Conference is an association of 15 NCAA Division II colleges and universities located in New England and New York that is committed to supporting balanced academic and athletic opportunities for more than 6,000 student-athletes. Each year, 4,000 of those student-athletes compete in conference championships in 23 sports, making the NE-10 the largest DII conference in the country in terms of sport sponsorship. Leading the way in the classroom, on the field and within the community, the Northeast-10 is proud of its comprehensive program and the experience it provides student-athletes.
Friday, February 28 - First Round | RECAP
Game 1: #4 NE So. New Hampshire 68, #5 SW American Int'l 53 | BOX
Game 2: #5 NE Bentley 93, #4 SW Saint Rose 79 | BOX
Sunday, March 2 - Quarterfinals
Game 3: #1 SW So. Connecticut 75, #4 NE So. New Hampshire 63 | BOX
Game 4: #1 NE Saint Anselm 79, #5 NE Bentley 78 | BOX
Game 5: #2 SW New Haven 83, #3 NE Saint Michael's 65 | BOX
Game 6: #3 SW Le Moyne 73, #2 NE Franklin Pierce 59 | BOX
Wednesday, March 5 - Semifinals
Game 7: #3 SW Le Moyne at #1 SW So. Connecticut – 7:00 p.m.
Game 8: #2 SW New Haven at #1 NE Saint Anselm – 7:00 p.m.
Saturday, March 8 - Final
Game 9: Winner Game 7 vs Winner Game 8* - 1:00 p.m.
NE = Northeast Division
SW = Southwest Division
* - if same seed, site determined by winner of regular-season matchup
^ - part of doubleheader with NE-10 Women's Championship quarterfinal
– #NE10 –
