Manchester, N.H. (February 24) -- In a game fit
to be decided in overtime, the Saint Anselm men's basketball team
defeated the College of Saint Rose by an 88-79 final in overtime on
Tuesday night in the regular-season finale for both teams. The
Hawks clinch the No. 9 seed in the NE-10 Tournament.
The Hawks jumped out to a 17-11 lead with 13:30 left in the half
a pair of free throws by Thomas Baudinet (Watertown,
Conn.). Saint Rose answered with a 10-0 run over the next
3:22 to take its largest lead of the game to that point at 21-17
after a basket by Shea Bromirski (Cambridge,
N.Y.).
Saint Anselm came roaring back though with an 11-0 run of its
own to push the lead out to 28-21 with 7:06 left in the opening
half. That run was also capped by a pair of free throws by
Baudinet. Saint Rose got back to within four points moments later
before the Hawks took a 38-32 advantage into the halftime break.
Baudinet led all scorers with 16 points in the half, including a
perfect 6-for-6 from the line. Jermaine Clark (Perth Amboy,
N.J.) was the leader for the Golden Knights with 15
points, including a trio of three-pointers.
In the second half, the Golden Knights closed to within 44-42
with 15:56 left after Clark converted a Saint Anselm turnover into
an easy layup. A Baudinet bank shot and a fastbreak layup by
Branimir Zeko (Mississauga, Ontario) pushed the
lead back up to 48-42 with 15:25 remaining. The Hawks kept that
six-point advantage with a 52-46 margin before a pair of Bromirski
free throws and a three-pointer got Saint Rose to within 52-51 with
12:45 on the clock. After a Hawk timeout, Bromirski knocked down
another trifecta from the top of the key to give the visitors the
lead at 54-52.
After Saint Anselm briefly regained the lead, the Golden Knights
stretched the lead to 60-57 with 9:10 left after a Clark layup off
of a Saint Anselm turnover. Saint Rose forced another Hawk timeout
with a 5-2 run, capped by a dunk from Brian Hanuschak
(Cumberland, R.I.) following a Hawk turnover at midcourt.
The Golden Knights pushed the lead into double digits for the first
time at 70-59 with 5:30 remaining after a deep three from Clark.
The Hawks kept battling though and with 3:10 left in the half, the
team got back to within five at 72-67 after a layup from
John Tello (Ridgefield Park, N.J.).
Saint Anselm answered with a 5-2 run, capped by a three-point
play by Tello with 1:43 left, to get back to within 73-72. The game
stayed as a one-possession affair just 15 seconds later as
Bromirski knocked down just one of two at the line for a 74-72
Saint Rose lead. On the next possession, Baudinet found
Hakeem Williams (Spring Valley, N.Y.) cutting to
the hoop for a layup to tie the game at 74-74 with 1:11 remaining.
Neither team could convert in the final minute as the game headed
to the extra session.
Saint Rose took a pair of two-point leads early in the overtime
period, but the Hawks answered each time to keep the game tied at
78-78 with 3:14 left. Greg Vetrano (Andover,
Mass.) gave the Hawks their first lead of the overtime
with an off-balance jumper with 2:45 left and the hosts stretched
that advantage to 82-78 with 2:32 remaining. In a fitting end,
Baudinet sealed the game with a pair of free throws with 33 seconds
left to make it an 86-79 Hawk lead. Williams nailed a pair of free
throws with 16.5 remaining to account for the 88-79 final.
Baudinet led three Hawks in double figures with 26 points, while
Clark had a 31-point effort to lead the Golden Knights.
With the win, the Hawks complete the regular season at 15-12
overall and 10-12 in the Northeast-10, while the Golden Knights
fall to 11-16 overall and 9-13 in the league. The Hawks are the No.
9 seed in the Northeast-10 Tournament after the win and will travel
to American International for a first-round game on Saturday.
