Photos courtesy of One More Shot Photography (Jim Weishaar)
Box Score
PHILADELPHIA, Pa. – Senior Victor Joshua (New Haven, Conn.) scored 24 points, and classmate Mike McCahey (Clarkstown, N.Y.) added 20 of his own as the Saint Anselm College men's basketball team defeated Philadelphia University, 83-71, on Saturday afternoon in an NCAA East Regional Quarterfinal matchup in Philadelphia, Pa.
The Hawks (22-7) advance to take on Saint Thomas Aquinas (27-4) on Sunday night in a 5:00 p.m. Semifinal matchup on the campus of Holy Family. The Spartans' Chaz Walter banked home a jumper as time expired to help Saint Thomas upset Southern Connecticut State University, 92-90, in the first game of the day on Saturday.
McCahey also added eight rebounds and three assists in the win, while Joshua handed out a team-high four assists. Harrison Taggart (Wallingford, Vt.) joined them in double-figures with 19 points and seven rebounds, with Tim Guers (Langhorne, Pa.) adding nine points and five rebounds. Chris Braley (Newport, Maine) corralled a team-high 10 rebounds for the Hawks.
TJ Huggins led Philadelphia with 34 points on 16-of-28 shooting, 10 rebounds, and four assists. Peter Alexis finished with a double-double of 17 points, 10 rebounds, and four blocks.
Mike McCahey opened the scoring for the Hawks and he later knocked down a triple in the corner off a feed from Victor Joshua to extend the lead to 7-2. After a pair of free throws from Philadelphia's Eric Long, Tim Guers converted a lefty-scoop shot to put Saint Anselm in front 9-4 with 14 minutes to play. Harrison Taggart and McCahey canned back-to-back three's to extend the lead to 15-4 a minute later, and Victor Joshua rattled home a three of his own from the top of the key to give the Hawks an 11-point advantage.
With the Hawks on top 26-15, Philadelphia fired off a quick 6-0 run to pull within five as TJ Huggins sandwiched baskets around a Brendan Kilpatrick score to make it a 26-21 game with 4:55 to play in the first half.
A triple from Chris Braley as the shot clock expired sparked a 9-0 run by the Hawks that included triples from McCahey and Tim Guers that put the Hawks ahead, 35-21. McCahey added one more three before the half ended to make it a 12-3 run to end the period and give Saint Anselm a 38-24 lead headed into the break.
The two teams traded baskets to open the second half, and a Harrison Taggart layup off a nice feed from Guers put the Hawks on top 44-30 with 16:50 to play. A three-point play from McCahey pushed the lead to 49-32, and Joshua kept it a 17 point game with a layup nearly three minutes later.
Philadelphia chipped away at the lead and Peter Alexis scored inside to cut the deficit to 55-44 and force a Hawk timeout. Cody Ball (Londonderry, N.H.) buried a triple out of the timeout, but Huggins answered right back with a shot from beyond the arc. Huggins knocked down another jumper on the next Rams possession to cut it to nine at 58-49 with 8:21 to play.
The Hawks put a stop to the momentum with an extended possession the next time down the floor, as Chris Braley grabbed three offensive rebounds and Harrison Taggart grabbed another one before hitting Victor Joshua for a layup that made it a 60-49 game. Braley extended the lead to 13 with a basket inside, and Joshua knocked down his second three of the game to keep it a 65-53 ball game with just over four minutes remaining.
Philadelphia continued to trade baskets with the Hawks, but could not cut into the deficit as Saint Anselm went a perfect 16-for-16 at the charity stripe down the stretch to pull away for the 83-71 victory.
The Hawks shot 25-of-60 (41.7%) from the floor in the game while knocking down 10-of-18 (55.6%) three-pointers, and shooting 23-of-27 (85.2%) from the free throw line. Philadelphia knocked down 44.3% (31-of-70) of their attempts, but only hit 3-of-20 (15%) of their threes. The Rams won the rebounding battle, 40-37, but committed 11 turnovers to just seven for the Hawks, leading to 12 points off turnovers.
Tickets for tomorrow's game are $10 for adults and $5 for seniors, children, and students with ID. Links for live stats and video will be posted on SaintAnselmHawks.com when they are made available.
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