Garden City, NY - The Adelphi University men's basketball team played host to Saint Anselm College in Northeast-10 Conference Saturday afternoon. With a final decision at 97-78, the Hawks leave Garden City with a 9-4 overall record and 5-3 in league play as Adelphi drops to 4-10 on the season and 1-7 in conference.
Three Panthers recorded double-digit figures in the loss, as
Michael Coffey led the squad with 23 points, shooting 9-12 from the field and 4-5 from downtown. Joining the rookie were
Ryan DeNicola and
Anthony Libroia, who contributed 15 and 12 points, respectively.
Damon Coleman had eight points and also grabbed four steals, despite the final score. Leading all players in the game was Saint Anselm's Roy Mabrey who collected 29 points, shooting 11-18 from the field and a perfect 4-4 at the free throw line. Three other Hawks finished the win in double-figures.
Less than 15 seconds into the game, Saint Anselm's Harrison Taggart drove to the basket for a quick lay-in to take an early 2-0 lead over the hosts. The Panthers didn't get on the board til Morgan drained one of two free throws, to trail the Hawks 13-1. The visiting team controlled much of the first half, going on a 12-5 run that ended in 19 point lead over Adelphi with 12:46 remaining.
Fighting back, the home team came within 10 of the Blue and White on a Libroia fast break with just under five minutes remaining in the first half. Coffey, who shot 5-7 from the field and 2-3 from beyond the arc for 13 points in the first half brought the Panthers within seven at 2:07, but the Hawks were quick respond. Four consecutive three-pointers from the Hawks in the remaining two minutes gave them a 17-point lead, 54-37 as they went into the locker room.
Coming off the break, Coffey drained a three-pointer nine seconds into the second half. A jumper courtesy of Libroia had the Brown and Gold nearly trailing by single digits, 46-56, but foul trouble handed control back to the Hawks, who made 5-6 shots at the charity stripe. The largest lead of the half came for the Hawks with 3:57 remaining, 97-69. The Panthers held the Hawks from reaching triple-digits, but could only muster nine more points before regulation expired.
Adelphi will return to their home court on Wednesday, January 14 as they host Bentley University at 7:30 p.m. in the Center for Recreation and Sports.
