Men's Basketball Contains High-Flying Adelphi, Leaves Long Island with 81-77 Win Saturday

1/21/2017 12:00:00 AM

Links: Box Score

GARDEN CITY, N.Y. – The Merrimack College men's basketball team held the Adelphi University Panthers – the top scoring team in the Northeast-10 Conference and 12^th-most prolific offense in the country – to their fewest points since December during Saturday's 81-77 victory at the Center for Recreation and Sports. Four Warriors scored in double figures including a double-double for graduate forward Anthony Barry (Uxbridge, Mass.), who became the 17^th player in school history to reach 500 career rebounds on Saturday.

The Basics
Score: Merrimack 81, Adelphi 77
Records: Merrimack (13-6, 8-5 NE10) | Adelphi (14-6, 7-5 NE10)
Location: Center for Recreation and Sports | Garden City, N.Y.  

The Turning Point:
Removing Adelphi's buzzer-beating banked-in 3-pointer as time expired, the Warriors ended the game with six straight points over the final 1:22 to prevent the Panthers from changing the outcome. Out of an Adelphi timeout after the Panthers pulled within one, 75-74, sophomore Ryan Boulter (Mansfield, Mass.) came off a screen at the top of the key to drain a straightaway 3-pointer and made it a 78-74 game, effectively icing the contest for the Navy and Gold.

How It Happened (First Half)

• Assisted by a 7-0 run after Merrimack jumped out to a 9-6 lead featuring four early points from Barry, the Panthers held a four-point lead after the first five minutes of the half. Michael Coffey capped the seven-point stretch with his first triple of the day at the 15:02 mark
• The next five minutes included three ties as neither team was able to pull away from the other. Senior captain Riley Calzonetti (Neptune City, N.J.) answered Coffey's second 3-pointer for a lay-in to pull the Warriors within one point, 22-21, with under nine minutes left
• Calzonetti's make started a 15-3 Merrimack run that last through the 3:52 mark. Boulter accounted for four of the 15 points – with both makes on slashing layups – and freshman Jaleel Lord (Jersey City, N.J.) connected on his first 3-pointer after making five on Wednesday. Merrimack led by nine, 34-25, at the end of the stretch
• Adelphi used a 8-2 spurt over the next three minutes to pull within two, 35-33. On the Warriors' last possession, freshman Juvaris Hayes (Paterson, N.J.) knifed to the basket for an uncontested lay-in, making it a 37-33 game after 20 minutes

How It Happened (Second Half)

• Adelphi went on a 12-4 run over the first five minutes to take a 45-41 lead. Manny Suarez scored 10 of the 12 Panthers' points, including an old-fashioned 3-point play followed by a 3-pointer at the 16:46 mark
• With 12:50 remaining and after a missed layup from Boulter, Hayes got momentum back on Merrimack's side with a theft followed by an easy score to bring the Warriors back within two, 49-47.
• Beginning at the 10:59 mark, Boulter and Coffey went back and forth, accounting for the game's next nine points. Merrimack's sharpshooter ended the stretch by drilling a triple to tie the game at 55-all. Boulter scored seven straight points during the stretch, followed by a lay-in from Hayes that gave the Warriors a 59-55 lead with 8:54 to play
• After Adelphi pulled within one point, 65-64, Merrimack executed an out-of-bounds play that ended with a 3-pointer from sophomore Troy McLaughlin (Old Tappan, N.J.). Hayes followed with another steal on Adelphi's inbound, dishing to junior Kyle Howes (Maynard, Mass.) to give Merrimack five points in a span of 12 seconds. The Warriors led 70-64 with 4:44 remaining
• The 15^th and final lead change of the game came after Manny Suarez's 3-point play put Adelphi back in front, 71-70, following a 7-0 run. Merrimack answered with a two-pointer from Barry, who pump faked at the free-throw line to get to the rim. McLaughlin then swooped in to cut off Adelphi's outbreak and scored a quick lay-in to make it a 74-71 game
• Boulter's game-clinching triple came with 54 seconds remaining, answered another 3-pointer from Coffey. Hayes made three free throws in the final minute to secure the game for the Warriors

Inside The Numbers

• Boulter and Hayes served as the catalysts of the offense. Beginning with the former, Merrimack's leading scorer finished with 26 points on 11-of-21 shooting. Typically a threat from beyond the arc, nine of Boulter's 11 field goals came from inside the 3-point line marking the most two-pointers he has had this season
• Just missing out on his second triple-double of the season, Hayes totaled 17 points and 11 assists for his seventh double-double of the season. The first-year floor general added nine rebounds and five steals
• Barry's second straight double-double included his 500^th career carom – becoming the 17^th player in program history to earn that feat. He finished the day with 13 points and 10 boards for his fourth time doubling up this season, and his 18^th double-figure scoring game of the year
• Battle of the point guards: Hayes and McGuinness went head-to-head for the first time after entering Saturday as the top-two distributors in the NE10. Hayes won the battle handily as Adelphi's point guard fouled out with just five points and a season-low two assists
• Adelphi also entered the game averaging close to 90.0 points per game with 218 3-pointers – the third most in the country. Merrimack held the Panthers to 28 percent shooting from distance and eight makes, the fewest for the team in six weeks

Up Next
Merrimack returns to Hammel Court on Tuesday night when the Warriors host American International at 7:30 p.m.    

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