Credit: Soren Frantz
The men’s basketball team continues to fight off their opponents
The Owl men welcomed Western Connecticut State to Spaulding Gymnasium on Saturday, February 5 at 3 p.m. There were no spectators allowed at this game.
After three losses in the past four games, all of which they led or were within one possession in the final 10 minutes, the Owls were looking to capture a win. After the Owls trailed for just 20 seconds in the opening half en route to a 38-28 lead at the break, it appeared as if they had withstood Western Connecticut’s second half attack, turning what became a 44-41 score into a 56-44 lead with about 10 minutes left. Less than four minutes later, the Owls found themselves trailing by one, due to a powerful attack from Western Connecticut State’s Kendall Robinson. The Owls did eventually regroup, thanks to a combined 39 points and 28 rebounds from first-year Octavio Brito and junior Jeff Hunter. In this 75-69 Little East Conference victory, the Owls kept pace with the league’s first, third, and fourth-place teams who all won on the same day.
Earlier in the week, the Owls went to Eastern Connecticut State to compete at the Geissler Gymnasium on Wednesday, February 2 at 7 p.m.
The Owls had a fast start, taking what ended up being their game-high seven point lead not even two minutes in. They committed six turnovers in the next five minutes, as Eastern Connecticut went on a 14-5 run for a two-point lead. The Owls then turned the ball over three times over the final 13 minutes of the first half, eventually taking a 27-21 lead, before taking the half time break with a four-point lead.
In what ended up being a game-altering stretch, the Owls shot only 4-for-13 and committed five turnovers over the opening nine minutes of the second half. They saw their 35-31 edge turn into a 53-44 deficit after being outscored 22-9. Continuing forward, the Owls made seven of their next 10 shots from the field while their defense held Eastern Connecticut to a 2-for-14 effort from the field with five turnovers. Five free throw misses in the final 10 minutes and three misses from the field in the last one minute prevented them from digging themselves out of a hole. Although the Owls shot eight percentage points better than Eastern Connecticut State during this match, they committed eight more turnovers than the Warriors and went only 8-for-15 at the foul line. The Owls lost for the third time in the last four games, ending with a score of 64-61.
The Owls will be back in action on Wednesday, February 9 against the University of Massachusetts-Dartmouth.
Piper Pavelich can be contacted
at ppavelich@kscequinox.com
