Men's Hoops Travels to First-Place, 15th-ranked Saint Anselm Wednesday Night
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Full Game Notes
NORTH ANDOVER, Mass. – Looking to bounce back from a heartbreaking loss against Stonehill, the Merrimack men's basketball team will be shooting for an upset bid when it travels to No. 15 Saint Anselm for a Wednesday night Northeast-10 Conference battle at Stoutenburgh Gym.
Merrimack and Saint Anselm are meeting for the 103rd time in all-time history. The Hawks are the second-most frequent opponent for the Warriors in program history, second only to Stonehill (107).
The Warriors have won three out of the last five matchups against the Hawks, including a sweep in last year's regular-season set. But Saint A's rallied from a first-half deficit to cruise past Merrimack earlier this season, as the Hawks posted a 98-83 win against the Warriors back on Nov. 28 at Hammel Court. Despite the recent success, Merrimack does trail in the all-time series, owning just a 44-58 record in 102 previous meetings.
In Merrimack's last outing, the Warriors saw a nine-point lead evaporate into a two-point deficit before freshman Gelvis Solano tied it up at 56-56 with 24 seconds to go. But Stonehill came down and on the final possession Josh Heyliger tipped a missed layup into the basket as the buzzer sounded, as the Skyhawks stunned the Warriors, 58-56, in a wild Northeast-10 Conference matchup on Sunday night at Merkert Gymnasium.
Down four midway through the second, sophomore Ryan Woumn ignited the bench with his first trey of the game, sparking 13-0 run capped by back-to-back and-one baskets from Clifford to push the Warriors ahead, 49-40, with under six minutes to go, sealing a run by the Merrimack defense that kept the Skyhawks off the board over nearly five full minutes.
But Stonehill stormed back, mounting its game-deciding 18-7 run before eventually taking a momentary 52-51 lead. Solano would then respond with his only triple of the game, putting Merrimack ahead, 54-52, with 1:21 to go.
That sparked a wild final minute of play, as Adam Fazzini tied it up on a layup before the hosts capitalized on a huge Merrimack turnover thanks to Josh Heyliger notching a pair of freebies. Solano would then come back down the floor, slice through the lane and tie it up at 56-56 with under 30 seconds to go, and the game appeared as if it were destined for overtime.
But on the last possession of the game, a Stonehill 3-pointer from Markle did not connect, leading to one final layup chance. The initial shot did not go, but Heyliger was there to tap it in mere milliseconds before the final buzzer. After a brief conference, the officiating crew ruled that the basket counted, giving the Skyhawks the win in dramatic fashion.
Picked to finish ninth according to the Preseason Coaches' Poll, the Hawks have gone above and beyond all preseason predictions and have been one of the top - if not the best - team in the conference all season long.
Saint A's rides into Wednesday night's meeting winners of six consecutive contests, including a three-point (75-72) win over Bentley its last time out. Its last loss came at second-place Assumption back on Jan. 19. Since the turn of the New Year, the Hawks have gone 10-1 and are 13-2 over their last 15 games. The Hawks have been dominant at Stoutenburgh Court, going 8-1 in nine previous home games. Their only loss at home came at the hands of UMass Lowell (91-88) back on Dec. 4.
Four players average double-digit scoring figures for Saint A's, highlighted by sophomore guard Roy Mabrey. The underclassman leads all players with 18.7 ppg (2nd in NE-10) on 45.5 percent shooting from the floor and an equally impressive 39.2 percent mark from long range. Mabrey has shot 91.2 percent from the stripe this year, as well.
Freshman sensation Mike McCahey has paced Saint A's down low with a team-best rebounding average of 7.2 rpg. The rookie has contributed 17.1 ppg, as well, and ranks fifth in the league in scoring. Also averaging double figures in scoring is Chris Santo (13.1), who has averaged 21.6 minutes off the bench and has converted 55.6 percent from the floor and 31.6 percent from downtown. Dino Mallios, meanwhile, has posted 9.4 ppg to go along with a side-high 7.8 assists per game average.
As a team, the Hawks boast the top offense in the conference (82.5), and that has more than made up for their second-to-last defensive scoring average (71.2). Saint A's also ranks first in overall (48.2) and 3-point (39.5) shooting, while the team's 18.3 assists per game is also the best mark in the league.
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