Junior Raheem May-Thompson led a balanced scoring effort for Stonehill with 13 points off the bench. (PHOTO BY Marcus Snowden) |
Strong second half defense, points off turnovers and second chance points the difference in Skyhawks home opener
Stonehill outscored Queens 29-17 in the second half to break open a four point (28-24) halftime lead and earn the win in the Skyhawks home opener. Stonehill held the Knights to 30.6-percent (15-for-49) shooting on the day, including 6-for-27 (22.2%) in the second half and took advantage of 18 Queens turnovers for a 23-8 margin in points off. The Skyhawks finished with a 45-34 rebounding edge, resulting in a 20-4 margin in second chance points, and also posted a 15-5 advantage in bench scoring.
Senior Patrick Lee (Fayetteville, N.Y./Fayetteville-Manlius) led the way for Stonehill with his first double-double of the season (fourth career) as he scored ten points to go with a career-high 12 rebounds (five offensive) and career-best four blocked shots. Junior Raheem May-Thompson (London, England) led the balanced scoring effort for the Skyhawks with a team-high 13 points, on 6-of-10 shooting from the field, and three rebounds (two offensive) in 24 minutes off the bench.
Senior Andre Tongo (Acton, Mass./Acton-Boxborough) also netted ten points to go with a career-high seven rebounds (three offensive), while junior Brian Hamor (Schenectady, N.Y./Bishop Gibbons) scored ten points on 3-of-5 shooting from three-point range. Junior Sam Markle (Bethany, Conn./Saint Thomas More) chipped in with a career-high eight rebounds to go with eight assists and seven points.
Senior Patrick Lee grabbed a career-high 12 rebounds to go with ten points for his fourth career double-double. (PHOTO BY Bert Lane) |
Stonehill finished shooting 35.5-percent (22-for-62) from the field, including 41.4% (12-29) in the second half, in the contest.
Senior Khalil McDonald (Queens Village, N.Y./Campus Magnet) was the lone Queens player in double figures with a game-high 14 points, shooting 5-for-15 from the field, including 2-for-4 from three-point range, while converting both free-throw attempts, to go with eight rebounds and two steals. Sophomore Jeremiah Mordi (Valley Stream, N.Y./Valley Stream Central) added nine points, five rebounds and two assists, while junior Daniel Watson (Mt. Vernon, N.Y./Mt. Vernon) chipped in with seven rebounds in 26 minutes off the bench.
Stonehill used a 12-2 run over a seven minute span over the midway point of the second half to turn a five point lead (36-31) after McDonald drained a three with 14:27 to play in the half into a 15 point advantage (48-33) on a layup from Tongo with 7:35 remaining. Queens pulled within ten (49-39) with two Mordi free-throws with 3:59 to play, but that was as close as the Knights would get.
Stonehill answered with a fast break dunk from May-Thompson to spark a push that produced a game-high 16 point lead (55-39) after a free-throw from Tongo with 1:52 remaining. Markle produced a conventional three-point play during the game-clinching run as well.
Queens led by five on two occasions in the opening ten minutes of the contest, the latter after a McDonald layup (16-11) with 10:40 left in the first half. A Stonehill timeout spurred a 10-3 run that saw the Skyhawks take the lead (21-19) after a May-Thompson jumper with 5:19 left before the intermission. Stonehill extended the lead to six (28-22) on a Hamor three with 3:01 remaining before setting for the four point (28-24) halftime lead.
Stonehill (2-0, 1-0 NE-10) returns to Northeast-10 Conference play on Tuesday night when it visits Franklin Pierce University at 7:30 p.m. The Skyhawks return home on Sunday, November 27, to host Merrimack College for an NE-10 matchup at Merkert Gym at 3:30 p.m.
Highlights and Coach McLaughlin Postgame Interview |