ORANGEBURG, N.Y. – Thanks to a layup with seven seconds remaining from junior Roy Kane, Jr. (Norwalk, Conn./Norwalk), the University of New Haven men's basketball team scored a 65-64 win over Dominican in a key East Region match-up on Wednesday night. Leading the Blue and Gold overall on the night was junior Elijah Bailey (Freeport, N.Y./The Hotchkiss School) who finished with 21 points, his third-straight and fifth overall game with 20+ in the scoring column.
Bailey was one of three players in double figures with senior Najee Larcher (Brooklyn, N.Y./Xaverian) and redshirt-sophomore Derrick Rowland (Cohoes, N.Y./Green Tech) each finishing with 10 point. For the second-straight game, the majority of the Blue and Golds scoring came from their starting five with Larcher's 10 points representing the only bench points of the night. Nine points each from Kane and freshman Quashawn Lane (Trenton, N.J. /Trenton Catholic Academy), and a six-point effort from junior Kessly Felizor (Hightstown, N.J./Hightstown) wrapped up New Haven's scoring.
Overall, New Haven closed out the night shooting 53.3 percent from the field, connecting on 24-of-45 field goal attempts. New Haven's 53.3 percent from the field is nearly 20 percentage points higher than Dominica's 36.0 defensive field goal percentage. The Blue and Gold did struggle from outside the arc, making just 4-of-11 attempts after entering the night averaging more than nine per contest. New Haven put up its best numbers in the opening half when they finished 14-of-24 (58.3%) from the field with half of its three pointers included in that total.
Defensively, New Haven held a team that averaged 83 points per game and had won its last nine games to just 64 points overall, including just a minimal 23 points in the first 20 minutes. Additionally, New Haven held Dominican's starting five to just 26 combined points, while in that first half alone, Dominican shot just 29.6 percent from the field (8-of-27).
For the game, New Haven also held a 38-27 lead in the rebounding battle with a pair of Chargers, Kane and Larcher, leading the way with 10 rebounds apiece. Also among the rebounding leaders for New Haven was Felizor who pulled down seven boards.
New Haven got out to a hot start, opening up an 11-0 lead just over four minutes into the action, holding Dominican without a field goal among its first four attempts until a three pointer from Tavon Ginyard broke the drought. Leading New Haven in its opening run was Felizor who opened up the game with a put-back dunk and added three more points on an old-fashioned three point play for five of the 11 points.
That early lead for New Haven held throughout the opening half as it matched the early 11 point lead on three additional occasions, all within the final three minutes, including with a pair of free throws from Kane that provided the margin at the break, 34-23. Down the stretch in the opening half it was Larcher with the hot hand as he scored all 10 of his points in the game in the final seven minutes of the half, including a pair of three pointers in the final three minutes.
Coming out of the intermission, Dominican turned the tables of sorts, holding New Haven without a bucket in the first three-plus minutes with Bailey breaking the drought with a layup. In that same stretch, Dominican managed to cut its deficit to three using an 8-0 run.
New Haven's early shooting struggles persisted, connecting on just three field goals in the first 10 minutes, but despite that, the Blue and Gold did manage to rebuild its lead to seven, 44-37. Facing that deficit, Dominican stepped into another gear, rattling off 13 unanswered points to take its first lead of the game. Bailey again broke the drought for New Haven as he drove straight down the lane for a layup with 8:32 remaining.
That layup from Bailey was part of 12 points over the final 8:30 of the game for the junior guard as he helped erase as much as an eight point deficit. Among those 12 points was a three pointer with 48 seconds remaining that provided just the second lead change of the night. On the ensuing trip down the court, Ginyard was fouled outside the arc and calmly sunk all three free throws to regain a one-point lead with 19 seconds remaining. Following a timeout, Kane answered with a layup with seven seconds remaining and after missing the opportunity for a three point play, Dominican was only able to muster a three point shot at the buzzer after rushing down the court which was off the mark.
New Haven will make its first appearance on its home court in the New Year when they host another regional power Saint Thomas Aquinas on Saturday, January 5. The match-up with STAC will be the final before the Chargers return to NE10 action, opening cross-divisional play four days later against Saint Anselm. Fans who are unable to attend the game can follow the action online with live video on the Charger Sports Network, part of NE10 Now, and live stats. Links are available on NewHavenChargers.com.
