­­MANCHESTER, N.H. – The University of New Haven men's basketball team erased as much as a 13-point first half deficit to earn its sixth victory in the last seven games, defeating Southern New Hampshire 69-64 at the SNHU Fieldhouse on Saturday. Returning to the 20-point club for the 10th time this season was senior Danny Upchurch (Bridgeport, Conn./Notre Dame Catholic) who led the Chargers with 20 points, which he added to 10 assists for his second double double of the season that came courtesy of points and assists.

Upchurch was one of three New Haven players in double figures as he was joined by sophomores Roy Kane, Jr. (Norwalk, Conn./Norwalk) and Derrick Rowland (Cohoes, N.Y./Green Tech) who finished with 12 and 11 points, respectively. Just shy of double figures was sophomores Elijah Bailey (Freeport, N.Y./The Hotchkiss School) and Kessly Felizor (Hightstown, N.J./Hightstown) who closed out the night with nine and eight points, respectively, while all 17 of their combined points came in the second half.

As a team, New Haven finished the night shooting 46.6 percent (27-of-58), with its best shooting efforts coming in the second half where it finished 17-of-31 for 54.8 percent. Among the 27 total field goals were 12 from outside the three point arc, including seven in the second half alone, which came on 13 attempts for a 53.8 percent performance from long range over the final 20 minutes.

Felizor also led New Haven with a season-high 13 rebounds, part of 35 total as the Blue and Gold finished with a 35-29 margin in the rebounding battle. Defensively, Kane closed out his night with a season-high three blocks, which lead all players.

With the victory, the Chargers close out cross-divisional play with a 6-2 record, the most wins against the Northeast-Division since the 2013-14 season.

FIRST HALF HIGHLIGHTS

·         After tracking down the long tip, the Chargers put the first points on the board just 10 seconds into the action when Mihailo Vasic (Novi Sad, Serbia) sunk a layup attempt set up on a pass from Kessly Felizor (Hightstown, N.J./Hightstown) who returned to the starting lineup for the first time since the season opener.

·         After that opening bucket, New Haven went on an 0-for-7 stretch from the field, however the Blue and Gold answered that drought by going 4-of-4 on their next four attempts, all resulting in an 11-10 lead for the Chargers. Included in that run was a perfect effort from Roy Kane, Jr. (Norwalk, Conn./Norwalk), while defensively he picked up the first stuff of the night, rejecting a Penmen attempt.

·         Following a nearly three minute scoring drought left the Chargers trailing by nine, its largest deficit to that point, the Blue and Gold used back-to-back three pointers from Danny Upchurch (Bridgeport, Conn./Notre Dame Catholic) to cut that deficit to three with 4:30 remaining in the half.

·         The Penmen responded by holding New Haven scoreless for a four minute span as Michael Bourke (South Orange, N.J./The Hun School of Princeton) answered a 10 points Southern New Hampshire rally with a three pointer from the corner.

·         Derrick Rowland (Cohoes, N.Y./Green Tech) would cap off the opening half with his first three pointer of the night, also from the corner, as the Chargers trailed 34-25 at the break.  

·         Upchurch led five New Haven scorers in the opening frame with eight points as he finished 3-of-8 from the field, including a pair of three pointers. Just shy of Upchurch was Rowland, whose seven first half points all came during his early 3-of-3 stretch from the field. He would finish the half with one missed field goal in four attempts.

·         Overall for the half, the Chargers shot 37.3 percent (10-of-27), while making five three pointers. New Haven was not credited with a trip to the free throw line, while the Penmen closed out the half shooting 46.2 percent (12-of-26).

SECOND HALF HIGHLIGHTS

·         Defense turns to offense for the Chargers as after trading baskets in the opening few minutes of the half, New Haven managed back-to-back scores, each of which came after forcing the Penmen into turnovers. Those two buckets were part of a 7-0 swing for New Haven that forced a Penmen timeout and ended with the Chargers trailing 38-34.

·         New Haven extended that 7-0 run to a 17-3 rally that again forced the Penmen to call for time looking to end the Blue and Gold's momentum. The majority of the Chargers scoring during the rally came from two players, Upchurch who scored eight and Bailey who added seven. Together, the pair combined for three buckets from outside the arc. All told, the Chargers 17-3 rally ended with the Blue and Gold leading 44-41.

·         After the Penmen answered that run with back-to-back buckets of their own to regain a one-point lead, the Chargers responded by draining back-to-back from long range with Upchurch and Rowland combining for the six-point swing.

·         Following a period where the teams traded buckets for a five-minute stretch, the Chargers would again rally, this time with eight-straight that ended with a 66-55 lead with 2:12 remaining. Capping off that run was back-to-back three pointers from Upchurch and Rowland, the second of which came off a pass from Upchurch pushing him into double figures in the assist column for the second time this season and the third time in his career.

·         The Penmen responded by scoring six straight and looked to cut it to a four-point deficit with 30 seconds remaining but the attempt rimmed out. The Chargers would ice the victory at the line, making their first two attempts of the night with 14.6 seconds remaining, those coming from Felizor.  

·         A last ditch three pointer by the Penmen with 1.9 seconds remaining would prove not enough as the Chargers would go to the line one more time with Upchurch providing the final margin, 69-64.

·         Upchurch again led New Haven's scorers in the second half as he finished with a dozen points, shooting 50 percent in the final 20 minutes, 4-of-8.

UP NEXT
The Chargers reopen Northeast Division play when they close out the month of January against crosstown rival Southern Connecticut State University of Wednesday, January 31. Opening tip at Moore Fieldhouse is scheduled for 7:30 pm.