Men's Basketball Executes Down the Stretch, Comes Away with 68-65 Victory over Franklin Pierce
Links: Box Score | Travonne Berry-Rogers Interview | JT Strickland Interview | Bert Hammel Interview | Photos
NORTH ANDOVER, Mass. – The Merrimack College men's basketball team got its offense from senior Travonne Berry-Rogers (Lynn, Mass.), who was honored before the game as part of Senior Day, and junior JT Strickland (Laurel, Md.) in the final minute to secure the lead from Franklin Pierce for good as the Warriors defeated the Ravens 68-65 from Hammel Court on Saturday afternoon. With the win, the Warriors remain in the hunt for the final playoff spot in the Norteast Division
The Basics
Score: Merrimack 68 | Franklin Pierce 65
Records: Merrimack (14-11, 9-11 NE-10) | Franklin Pierce (14-13, 9-11 NE-10)
Location: Hammel Court | North Andover, Mass.
Northeast-10 Postseason Outlook
Merrimack moves ahead of Franklin Pierce due to its 2-0 record over Southern New Hampshire with the victory. With Bentley's loss to Stonehill, Merrimack is very much alive in the playoff hunt. On Tuesday, the Warriors need to beat Saint Michael's and have Franklin Pierce defeat Bentley at home to advance to the NE-10 Championship as the fifth seed from the Northeast Division.
1) Southern NH (19-6, 16-4)
2) Saint Anselm (17-7, 14-6)
3) Stonehill (18-8, 13-7)
4) Saint Michael's (16-9, 12-8)
5) Bentley (15-11, 10-10)
6) Merrimack (14-11, 9-11)
7) Franklin Pierce (14-13, 9-11)
8) Assumption (8-17, 5-15)
How It Happened
Before the game, Berry-Rogers was honored with a special Senior Day ceremony. He was presented with a commemorative ball and celebrated at center court with family and friends. The senior entered his final home game coming off a career-high 18-point performance against Saint Anselm on Wednesday night.
The teams exchanged baskets to begin the first half, as a Ryen Vilmont, the Ravens' leading scorer, drained a three-pointer to make it 10-10 6:02 into the game. That shot was part of a 13-0 run for Franklin Pierce that made it 17-10 at the 12:38 mark of the opening stanza.
Merrimack would chip away at the deficit with help from a Gelvis Solano (Harlem, N.Y.) three-pointer that made it 20-17 in favor of the Ravens with less than nine minutes left in the half. A Strickland three-pointer gave the Warriors the lead back at 24-22 at the 5:33 mark.
The teams went back-and-forth for the remainder of the half, with Solano hitting another attempt from beyond the arc which made it 31-29 entering halftime. Solano and Kyle Howes (Maynard, Mass.) led the way for Merrimack with eight first-half points apiece.
Trailing 39-37 early in the second stanza, the Warriors took off on a 10-0 spurt to flip the script and take a 47-39 lead. Troy Hammel (Valencia, Calif.) started the run with a three while Berry-Rogers ended it with a transition layup. The Ravens bounced back with consecutive threes from Casse Aboubacar to cut the deficit to two points at 47-45.
Merrimack would keep the lead for a span of nearly 10 minutes, but the Warriors could never increase their advantage by more than five points. A Solano layup broke a 56-56 tie, but the Raven scored five straight to take its first lead since the beginning of the second half, 61-58, with less than four minutes to play.
Down the stretch Merrimack would execute on both ends of the floor, leading to the win. Vilmont got an offensive rebound and scored on the put back to push the Ravens ahead at 63-62 with 1:23 left. The advantage was short-lived. Merrimack drained the shot clock down on the ensuing possession before Strickland drove the lane and kissed a layup off glass to make it 64-63. The Warriors got a stop, then James Kennedy (Dorchester, Mass.) made a beautiful pass to Berry-Rogers who converted on the fast-break. Merrimack made its final six free throws of the game and walked away with the 68-65 win.
Inside The Numbers
- Offensively, the Warriors saw all five players finish in double figures, led by Solano with 19 on 7-of-14 from the field. Hammel, Howes, Kennedy and Strickland all finish with at least 10 points, but none of those players had more than 12
- Berry-Rogers appeared in 25 minutes off the bench and was key down the stretch when Howes fouled out with four minutes to play. He only shot 2-of-7, but was part of Merrimack's late-game heroics
- Despite the score finishing in the 60s, both teams got out on the break often, combing for 34 fast-break points. The Warriors had the edge inside, outscoring the Ravens 34-24 in the paint
- With Kennedy in-and-out of the lineup, especially in the first half, the Warriors guards picked up the slack on the glass. Hammel and Strickland each finish with seven boards, with 12 of the 14 combined coming on the defensive glass
Up Next
Merrimack will travel up to Colchester, Vt. for the regular-season finale against Saint Michael's on Tuesday night, with tipoff set for 7:30 p.m. The Warriors narrowly lost to the Purple Knights by two points back in December.
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