Stevens Wins; Elmira Suffers Tough Loss
Stevens 77, Gallaudet 66
Four players scored in double figures as the Stevens Institute of Technology men's basketball team picked up its first win of the young 2013-14 season, topping Gallaudet University by a score of 77-66 Sunday in the 14th Annual Coaches vs. Cancer Classic hosted by York College (Pa.).
Sophomore guard
Evan Klimchak (Readington, N.J.) scored a team-high 17 points, while senior guard
Andrew Meszaros (Phoenixville, Pa.) had 13 points, seven rebounds and four steals to lead the Ducks. Junior forward
Patrick Sabatino (Westfield, N.J.) finished with 12 points and five boards, while senior guard
Phillip DeSeignora (Boston, Mass.) went for 10 tallies and four steals.
Stevens(1-1) shot much better than it did in its opener and committed six fewer turnovers. The Ducks went 27-for-56 (48.2 percent) from the floor, 11-for-24 from three (45.8 percent) and 12-for-16 at the line (75 percent).
Klimchak, Meszaros, DeSeignora and sophomore
Kevin Zychowski (Mendham, N.J.) all drilled two three-pointers for the Ducks, who held a 28-26 margin the paint, an 8-2 edge in fast-break-points and poured in 25 points off turnovers. Stevens' bench also scored 22 points, compared to 10 for Gallaudet, and held a 2-to-1 ratio in second-chance points (16-8).
Gallaudet grabbed an early five-point margin 6:52 into the game and was able to keep that lead for the next three-plus minutes, as the Bison lead 21-16 with 11:24 left in the first half.
A DeSeignora three and a three-point play from freshman forward
Ian Bennett (Menlo Park, Calif.) gave the Ducks a lead at 22-21 with 9:25 in the first. Gallaudet reclaimed the edge, but Stevens quickly tied things at 24 and then scored seven-straight points to open a 31-24 margin at the 3:09 mark.
The lead swelled to as much as eight (38-30) late in the opening period with the two teams going into the break with scoreboard showing a 38-33 Stevens lead.
In the second, Stevens continued to hold a solid working lead and a Zychowski triple with 15:02 on the clock gave the Ducks an 11-point edge (48-37), and a pair of free throws from DeSeignora made it 54-38 Ducks with 11:48 remaining.
Freshman guard
Thomas Ahern (Rockville Centre, N.Y.) hit his first career three-pointer with 7:47 to go to push the advantage to 20 points, and the Bison did not threaten the rest of the way.
Stevens totaled 16 assists on 27 made buckets, getting a team-high four from junior forward
Kenny Gan (Hillsborough, N.J.) and freshman guard
Michael Langford (State Island, N.Y.). Eleven different players scored for the Ducks.
Drew 70, Elmira 68
After 17 lead changes, including three in the final 1:28 of the game, the Elmira College men's basketball team departed the NYU Tip-Off Tournament winless as EC fell 70-68 to the Rangers of Drew University. EC big-man
David Borelli '15 registered his first career double-double as he totaled 19 points and 14 rebounds, both career highs for the Rochester native.
Similar to their previous game against Morrisville State, the Elmira men got off to a good start as they took an early 11-4 lead at the 16:11 mark behind six points from Borelli and five more from
Neil Randolph '15. From there, both teams traded buckets and leads with Drew leading by as many as three points while EC's seven point lead would be the most by either team in the entire game.
Elmira would eventually take a two point lead into the break, leading the Rangers 36-34. Borelli had a monster first half, scoring 11 points and pulling down nine boards. Randolph also had a big first half for the Purple and Gold, scoring 10 of his game's 13 points.
EC would build their lead to six points in the early stages of the second half but Drew would eventually take their first lead in over 11 minutes at the 14:46 mark, 45-44. The Rangers would go on to take a five point lead at the 11:56 mark as they held the Soaring Eagles scoreless for a little over six minutes.
The Purple and Gold ended their scoring drought with a layup from
Nick Cesare '16, who would spark a mini 6-0 run, allowing EC to reclaim the lead at 50-49 with 10:20 remaining in the game. From there, both teams went back-and-forth, holding advantages at various points in the half with Elmira boasting a five point lead at the 4:25 mark, the largest lead either team held since the 10 minute mark.
Drew would use a 7-0 run over a three minute span to take a 65-63 lead. EC's Randolph put an end to the Drew run by hitting a three-pointer with 55 seconds remaining to take a 66-65 lead.
From there, Drew's Mike Klinger would convert on an and-one opportunity, putting the Rangers ahead 68-66 with 45 seconds to play. 12 seconds later, Elmira's Borelli scored his final two points of the game by hitting a pair of free throws, tying the game at 68-68 with 33 seconds left in regulation.
Then, with just five seconds remaining, Klinger scored his eighth straight point as he cut into the paint and scored a layup to give the Rangers a 70-68 edge. Elmira had a last-second chance for the win but
Josh Keys '14 would miss the three-point attempt, resulting in a two point loss for the Soaring Eagles.