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| Randall Stallworth had seven points, seven assists and two steals in the 80-66 loss to Lemoyne. |
Third-Seeded Skyhawks Upended By Dolphins
North Easton, Mass. - The inside-outside combination of Laurence Ekperigin and Damani Corbin led a LeMoyne offense that shot a sizzling 60 percent from the floor en route to 80-66 win over host Stonehill in the quarterfinal round of the Northeast-10 Men's Basketball Tournament on Tuesday evening at Merkert Gymnasium.
Ekperigin, the reigning Northeast-10 player of the year, had a monster evening, finishing with 19 points, 17 rebounds and four assists. Corbin, meanwhile, wrapped up his night with 16 points and 10 assists.
With Ekperigin leading the way, LeMoyne controlled the glass, outrebounding Stonehill 45-20.
The Skyhawks struggled offensively in the opening moments off the game as the Dolphins used a 10-0 spurt to give them an early lead, and then ran off seven more in a row a couple of minutes later to take a 27-12 lead.
Stonehill eventually cut the lead to five following back-to-back three-pointers from Randall Stallworth (Toms River, N.J.) and Nick Smith (Colonia, N.J.), but a three-point play from Ekperigin gave the momentum to LeMoyne going into halftime.
The Dolphins shot nearly 70 percent from the floor in the first 20 minutes, and while their shooting cooled down some in the second half (52 percent), they still managed to put 40 points on the board in the frame, led by Phil Barnes, who scored 12 of his 15 points in the final 20 minutes.
After LeMoyne's lead ballooned to 18 at 69-51 following an excellent pass from Corbin to Ekperigin on the fast break, which he finished with a powerful two-handed dunk, Stonehill went on a 14-3 run to close to within seven at 72-65 with less than two minutes left.
The Dolphins, who entered the game as the No. 6 seed, made eight straight free throws to seal the win.
The Skyhawks forced 25 LeMoyne turnovers, but shot 37 percent for the game, including just 5-for-25 from three-point land.
Sophomore Mike Kernan (Medford, N.J.) led a quartet of Stonehill players in double figures, with 15 points and six rebounds. Joining him with double digit performances were Matt Hall (13 points), A.J. Rudowitz (12 points, four rebounds, five assists) and Smith (12 points).
The Skyhawks, now 21-7 overall, will await word on an at-large bid into the NCAA Tournament. The announcement comes on Sunday evening.