Washington Adventist University Edges Bryant & Stratton College- Syracuse, 62-61
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|11/14/2022 12:00 PM | Kevin Turi, Sports Information Coordinator
Syracuse, NY-
The Bryant & Stratton College- Syracuse Men's Basketball team lost to Washington Adventist University, 62-61 on Monday night. The loss drops the Bobcats' record to 3-2 on the season and 1-1 at home.
How it happened:
In their second game in as many days, the Bobcats of Bryant & Stratton College- Syracuse struggled to get into the flow of the game early in the first half. The combination of shots not falling and some uncharacteristic turnovers allowed the visiting Shock of Washington Adventist University to jump out to an early lead.
However, good defensive intensity and rebounding helped keep the Bobcats in striking distance while the offensive side of the ball struggled. Heading into the halftime break, the Bobcats trailed, 31-18.
The story of the second half is completely different than that of the first. The Bobcats looked like an energized team after the break and fed off the crowd to push them back into the game. Big baskets throughout the second half from Jameel Abdallah (11 points, 10 rebounds) and Moses Hughes (15 points, 7 rebounds) cut into the Shock's lead and made the game close.
Every time the Bobcats would go on a little run, the Shock seemed to have an answer by hitting some timely 3's or getting to the free throw line to weather the storm of the Bobcats. But, with just under 5 minutes to play, the Bobcats would actually take a 1-point lead from the Shock on a driving basket by Darren Joyner (14 points, 4 assists).
The last few minutes of the game were exciting to watch as both teams made big plays and the lead switched back-and-forth between the two. Neither team could open a lead bigger than 2-points until just under a minute to play when the Shock had the basketball up by 1-point.
Forward, Ethan Murphy found himself open at the top of the arc and drilled a 3-pointer to give the Shock a 4-point lead with 20 seconds to play. Murphy lead all scorers with a game-high 25 points. On the ensuing inbound, Joyner pushed the ball up the court and hit a 3-pointer himself to cut the lead back to one with 8 seconds left.
Despite the Bobcats' efforts to foul the Shock in order to extend the game and try to send the game to overtime, they were unable to do so in time and the clock ran out with the Shock defeating the Bobcats, 62-61.
After the game, Head Coach Clay Gagen-Sherman said, "This is one of the first times this season that our group needed to respond after falling behind big in the first half. I am really proud of the adjustments that we made and the way that we competed after halftime."
Gagen-Sherman continued, "we did a lot of things really well on the defensive side and finished defensive possessions by rebounding the ball as a group. We just could not make enough plays down the stretch to be on the right side of this one."
Next Game:
The Bobcats will look to get back to winning ways this Saturday, November 19th at 3pm at Monroe Community College in Rochester, NY.
Be sure to follow all of our social media platforms @bscbobcatssyr for updates and more information on the 2022-23 Bryant & Stratton College- Syracuse Men's Basketball season.