Both the men and women’s basketball teams beat the St. Rose Golden Knights 59-54 and 62-54, respectively, in two close contests on Wed. night at the Goldstein Fitness Center.
The men’s team (6-16, 4-12 NE-10) came out of the gate with great offense against the Golden Knights (9-13, 6-9 NE-10). However, it was their defense that helped them prevail in the end. In fact, the game ended up being a thriller due to such a close contest.
“This win just helped show us we can play with the better teams in this league, therefore if we continue to play to our potential we should be able to make a push for the playoffs,” senior forward Jamaal James said.
James led the charge offensively putting up 16 points, seven rebounds, and had a field goal percentage of 66.7 percent. The Setters led most of the game with the help of seniors Kai Smith and Jaylen Mann collectively shooting 50 percent from downtown.
“[We] just started figuring out that our team is a very strong man-to-man defensive team, which showed over the past couple of wins,” James said. “However, we had some pretty good practices the past couple days and our coaches were able to put together a great scouting report which put us in a great position to win the game tonight.”
In the second half, defense was the key to victory, such as when senior guard, Denzel Primus-Devonish had a steal that led to a dunk by James. Another key defensive play was when, with seven seconds left in the game, Smith made a good recovery on a loose-ball that gave possession back to the Setters.
“When we were losing we were trying to figure out different defenses that make us the strongest and allow us to compete,” graduate assistant coach Kevin Clark said. “Kennedy (the head coach) does a great job at putting our guys in a position to both be in games and win games. The guys grinded it out with man-to-man defense and I think they are starting to take pride in it.”
The Setters held a slim 50-49 lead for nearly six minutes. They collected 16 rebounds and three key blocks. The Golden Knights (9-13, 6-9 NE-10) then took a 54-50 lead.
Primus-Devonish would take control nailing a three-pointer and making four straight free throws to solidify the win.
The women’s team (5-17, 4-12 NE-10) had a nice come-from-behind victory in their game where they took the game against the Golden Knights (9-14, 4-13 NE-10) in the second half.
The Setters came out of the gate stumbling quickly while the Golden Knights went on a 13-4 run to begin the game. Turnovers were a big reason for the Setters first half deficit as they had six and found themselves down 34-28 at halftime.
Freshman guard Shanice Allen led scoring with 13 points.
Junior guards Shanice Maynard and Jeane Drury had 10 and 12 points respectively with Maynard collecting 11 rebounds. Freshman and center, Kirsten Dodge had the highest field goal percentage with 44.4 percent.
Entering the second half, the Setters had a back-and-forth contest, as they would eventually take the lead on a three-pointer by junior guard, Margo Hackett. A good foul by Dodge prevented the Golden Knights from getting back into the game. The Setters did not look back as they held on to win.
The Setters headed on a three game road trip beginning on Sat., Feb. 15 with a match-up against New Haven, which will be followed by a double header at Southern Connecticut State on Wed., February 19.
Both teams finish up the regular season at home on Feb. 25 against Le Moyne Dolphins.