BOX SCORE

When and Where: February 20, 2016 – Easton, Mass. (Merkert Gymnasium)
Score: Stonehill College 69, Southern New Hampshire University 66
Records: Stonehill 19-7 (14-6 Northeast-10), SNHU 17-10 (13-7 Northeast-10)

Senior Rodney Sanders (Elizabeth, N.J.) scored a team-high 15 points, but Stonehill College erased an 18-point first-half deficit to edge out the Southern New Hampshire University men's basketball team, 69-66, Saturday afternoon at Merkert Gymnasium.

Sanders, who scored the first 10 of his points in the first half, was 5-for-9 from the field, including 3-for-4 from beyond the arc, and a perfect 2-for-2 at the stripe, to go along with five rebounds, two assists and two steals. Junior Chris Walters (Stamford, Conn.) tallied 13 points (5-9 FG, 1-2 3-FG, 2-6 FT), six boards, two blocks, two steals and an assist. Fellow junior Devin Gilligan (Amherst, N.H.) posted 11 points (2-6 FG, 1-3 3-FG, 6-7 FT) and eight rebounds, while senior BJ Cardarelli (Manchester, Conn.) also netted 11 points (4-12 FG, 1-7 3-FG, 2-2 FT), including seven in the opening 20 minutes, and collected four rebounds.

Isaiah Bess led the Skyhawks with 19 points, while Pierce Cumpstone posted a double-double of 15 points and 10 rebounds.

A pair of 3-pointers from Sanders and another from Cardarelli moved Southern New Hampshire out to a 9-2 lead over the first 2:17 of the contest. The lead was still seven more than five minutes later when a run of six straight points, including the final four from Sanders, stretched the advantage to 20-7 with 11:20 remaining in the opening half.

With the margin still 13 four minutes later, a Cardarelli basket and a 3 from junior Jerome Harris (Hartford, Conn.) gave the Penmen a game-high lead of 18 at 32-14 with 6:29 remaining. Stonehill would slice its deficit in half by closing the stanza on a 12-3 run that pulled it to within 37-28 at the break.

Stonehill maintained momentum by opening the second stanza with a 5-2 spurt that trimmed the deficit to six at 39-33 just over two minutes in. Consecutive 3-pointers from Gilligan and Sanders halted the run and made it a 12-point game, but a 13-1 surge later in the half – with six points coming from Cumpstone – gave Stonehill its first lead of the contest at 56-55 with 7:47 to play.

Four ties and four lead changes later, the Skyhawks still clung to a one-point lead until a pair of Ryan Logan free throws nudged the gap to three at 62-59 with 3:11 left. Three straight points from SNHU tied the game at 62 under a minute later, but a big Bess trey gave Stonehill a 65-62 advantage with under two minutes on the clock.

Buckets from junior Adrian Oliveira (Pawtucket, R.I.) and freshman Daquaise Andrews (Queens, N.Y.) put Southern New Hampshire back in front, 66-65, with 44 seconds left, but a Carter Smith triple moved Stonehill back on top, 68-66, with 24 seconds to play. The Penmen missed a go-ahead 3-pointer with less than 10 seconds left, but still had life after they committed a foul and Logan only made one of the two free throws with six seconds left. SNHU was fouled with two seconds on the clock and missed both free throws as Stonehill stole the victory.

Oliveira finished with seven points (3-6 FG, 1-1 FT) and four assists, while Harris chipped in five points (2-3 FG, 1-2 3-FG) and a pair of steals.

Notes:
-SNHU loses for just the second time in nine games.
-The Penmen have clinched no worse than the No. 4 seed in the Northeast-10 Northeast Division standings, which would put them at home against the Southwest's No. 5 seed on Friday, Feb. 26. If SNHU could force a tie with Stonehill for the No. 3 seed, the Penmen would hold the tiebreaker if Saint Anselm College ended up as the No. 1 seed, while the Skyhawks would own the tiebreaker if Bentley University landed as the top seed. A No. 3 seed would give Southern New Hampshire a Friday bye and send it to the Southwest's No. 2 seed on Sunday, Feb. 28.
-Stonehill outshot Southern New Hampshire, 50 percent (25-50) to 46.9 percent (23-49), including 65 percent (13-20) to 37.5 percent (9-24) in the second half.
-SNHU shot it slightly better from long distance, 36.8 percent (7-19) to 36 percent (9-25), while also making more free throws (13-11), but shooting a worse percentage (.909-.650) from the line.
-The Skyhawks outrebounded the Penmen, 30-27, while the paint was dead even at 28-all. Southern New Hampshire forced 18 Stonehill turnovers, while giving it away 16 times themselves, for a 25-18 advantage in points off mistakes.

Up Next:
The Penmen close out the regular season Tuesday, Feb. 23 (7:30 p.m.) when they play host to crosstown-rival Saint Anselm College (20-5, 15-5 NE-10) on Senior Night at the Fieldhouse. The game will be televised live on NESNplus and NESN National, as well as broadcast on WGIR 610-AM. Tickets can be purchased HERE or at the box office on the day of the game.

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