WEST HAVEN, Conn. – With a pair of players in double figures, the New Haven men's basketball team dropped a 76-67 decision to the visiting Saint Anselm Hawks on Wednesday night at the Jeffery P. Hazell Athletics Center. With the loss, New Haven falls to 7-8 on the season and 3-5 in the Northeast-10 Conference.

Leading the Chargers on the night was redshirt sophomore Ethan Simmon (Edison, N.J./St. Joseph Metuchen) who finished with 19 points, connecting on 6-of-16 from the field, including a pair from beyond the arc. He also finished 5-of-7 at the free throw line as his team-lead in the scoring column is the third-straight game he has led the Blue and Gold.

Joining him in double figures was sophomore Jah'likai King who finished with 17 points, also connecting on six field goals with his coming on 13 attempts, including one basket from beyond the arc. King was also 4-of-5 at the line. Seth Sharif-Brown (Hackensack, N.J./Hackensack) and Mahomed Traore were next up in the scoring column with nine and eight points, respectively.

As a team, New Haven closed out the night shooting 40 percent from the field, connecting on 26-of-40 attempts, including a 6-of-23 effort from long range. New Haven also finished 13-of-20 at the free throw line. The Hawks also won the battle of the boards with a 42-38 margin, with Simmon also leading in that battle with seven boards.

FIRST HALF NOTES

·         Saint Anselm came out of the gate to open up an early 6-0 lead before New Haven went to a fresh five on the floor and Sharif-Brown came off the bench to cut that lead in half with an and-one just over three minutes into the action.

·         The Hawks kept the pressure on, adding another six unanswered to take a 12-3 lead five minutes in. New Haven answered that nine point deficit with four straight to cut the deficit to seven.

·         The Hawks would keep the momentum going, opening up their first double figure lead at just after the midway point at 21-11. The Blue and Gold responded with a 9-1 rally to cut the deficit down to two before a Saint Anselm three looked to end New Haven's energy.

·         New Haven's energy didn't fade however as Simmon matched that three with one of his own and on the Chargers next possession connected on a fadeaway to knot the score at 25.

·         Following a bucket from Saint Anselm, Simmon struck again from long range, providing the first lead change of the night and pushing him over double figures with 11 points.

·         After the Hawks knotted the game at 31, the grit of Najimi George (Bridgeport, Conn./Kolbe Cathedral) shined thru as the freshman guard battle underneath for a putback that led to a 33-31 lead. Saint Anselm would have the final word as the teams went into the intermission knotted at 33.

SECOND HALF NOTES

·         Saint Anselm opened up the second half with the same intensity they opened up the game, building as much as a seven point lead before Tarese Morse (Springfield, Mass./Springfield) cut it to five with a putback for his first points of the night.

·         After Saint Anselm extended its lead back to double figures, the teams would trade the next six baskets with New Haven scoring to cut it to single digits and the Hawks answering right back.

·         After a little over 90 seconds of scoreless action, King looked to spark the New Haven offense as he streaked to the hoop for two and the foul, completing the three-point play to pull the Chargers deficit to nine.

·         The Hawks answered right back with a bucket on the other end but New Haven's momentum continued as Sharif-Brown would score on back-to-back possessions to make it a seven point game with just under six minutes remaining.

·         The Blue and Gold kept the pressure on and answered an 11-point deficit with an 11-3 run over the next three minutes to make it a three-point game with 3:39 remaining and forcing a Hawks timeout.

·         After trading the next four points evenly, the Hawks pushed their lead back to five with just over 90 seconds remaining. With the Chargers unable to convert on their next possession, Siant Anselm was able to lock away the win at the free throw line.

UP NEXT

Following a weekend bye the New Haven men's basketball team will return to work with the first half of the rivalry series when they travel across town to take on the Southern Connecticut State University Owls on Tuesday, January 14. Opening tip off from Moore Fieldhouse is set for 7:30 p.m., following the women's game, with all of the action available live on NE10 Now on Flo College.