SPRINGFIELD, Mass. – Making his first start in a Charger uniform, junior transfer Javel Cherry (Poughkeepsie, N.Y./Poughkeepsie) led the New Haven men's basketball team with 21 points as they secured the first victory in the young 2024-25 season 56-55 over Holy Family. With the win, which came on day two of the Conference Crossover Challenge hosted by American International, New Haven improves to 1-1 on the year heading into its opening game in NE10 play.

Cherry was one of two players who finished in doubles figures as he was joined by redshirt sophomore Ethan Simmon (Edison, N.J./St. Joseph Metuchen) who closed out the game with 11 points, the two most important coming at the free throw line with just five seconds remaining in the game.

Of the two leading scorers, Cherry led the duo from the field as he connected on 9-of-16 field goal attempts, with a third of those field goals coming from outside the three-point arc where he as 3-of-8. Additionally, he added three rebounds, two assists and two steals. Simmon closed out his double figure outing going 4-of-12 from the field and a perfect 3-of-3 at the free throw line.

Six other Chargers finished with at least two points in the game, with Ugo Nwachukwu (Imo State, Nigeria/Springfield Commonwealth Academy) and Najimi George (Bridgeport, Conn./Kolbe Cathedral) following the two leaders, each finishing with a half dozen. As a team, the Chargers closed out the game shooting 41.5 percent on 22-of-53, with five of the 22 buckets from outside the arc, while also going 7-of-11 at the line.

The Chargers and Rams finished in a 35-35 stalemate in the battle of the boards, with Nwachukwu leading all players in the game with eight rebounds, while sophomore Jah'Likai King (Newburgh, N.Y./Newburgh Free Academy) followed with seven boards. Nwachukwu also led the Chargers with five assists, part of 11 total for the team.

FIRST HALF HIGHLIGHTS

·        The Rams started things off on the afternoon, scoring the first three points of the game on two different trips to the free throw line, while the Chargers first points of the game came 94 seconds into the action on a layup from Nwachukwu.

·        That basket was the first of back-to-back with Cherry adding a layup 40 seconds later which provided the first lead change of the game.

·        The Rams responded to that lead change by scoring the next eight-straight points to open up a seven point lead, the largest of the half for either team.

·        That run for the Rams was possible as the Chargers were unable to convert a bucket for nearly a five minute span until George broke the drought with a jumper off a feed from Kyle Kearson (West Haven, Conn./West Haven).

·        That jumper sparked a series of seven-straight points for the Chargers with a three-pointer from Cherry and a layup from Nwachukwu accounting for the remaining five points and the latter of those buckets knotting the scoring at 11, just inside the 10 minute mark.  

·        The score would end up knotted again at 13 and 14 before the Chargers saw their largest lead of the half come three minutes later on a jumper from Cherry that provided a 17-14 cushion.

·        That lead wouldn't last however as the Rams took a four point lead into the halftime intermission after the Chargers struck last in the half with Nwachukwu converting a second-chance layup with 45 seconds remaining.

·        Cherry led the Chargers scoring in the opening half as he scored nearly half of his total points in the game, finishing with nine points on 4-of-7 shooting with a three pointer. Nwachukwu followed him with six points while pulling down five boards.

SECOND HALF HIGHLIGHTS

·        Just like in the first half, the Rams struck first in the second half, scoring the first four points before Tristian Jeffries (Hillside, N.J./Saint Thomas Aquinas) connected for the Chargers on a layup with 18:32 to play.

·        Again, just like in the opening half, that first bucket for the Blue and Gold sparked a run, this time a nine-point rally that ended with a one-point lead for the Chargers just inside the 15 minute mark.

·        That lead change was the first of four over the next two-plus minutes before the Rams took a lead with 12:07 to play, one they would not relinquish until the final seconds of the game.

·        The Chargers did manage to tie the score at 42 on a Jeffries three pointer before the Rams rattled off seven straight points to take a 49-42 lead with 7:55 remaining.

·        From that point it would be a back-and-forth battle until the three minute mark when Simmon cut the Rams lead down to a single point on an old-fashioned three point play with a layup and free throw.

·        George followed up a Rams dunk by scoring a tip-in that cut the deficit back to a single point. The Rams were unable to answer with just one shot coming on their next possession as George came up clutch again with the defensive rebound.

·        Jefferson didn't help itself on the Chargers next possession as they followed up a late 30-second timeout for the Chargers with a foul called just two seconds later that sent Simmon to the line where he connected on both free throws to provide the final margin of 56-55. A last-second three-point attempt for the Rams would come up empty.

UP NEXT

New Haven will take the next week to prepare for their next appearance on the hardwood as they head to Rindge, N.H. for the 2024-25 Northeast-10 Conference opening game where they will take on the Franklin Pierce Ravens. Opening tip off from Franklin Pierce Fieldhouse is set for 3:30 p.m. with all of the action available live on NE10 Now on Flo College.