When and Where: March 12, 2023 – Manchester, N.H. (Stoutenburgh Gymnasium)
Score: #18/25 Bentley University 73, Southern New Hampshire University 46
Records: SNHU 21-9, Bentley 23-6
Sophomore
Derrick Grant (Plainfield, N.J.) matched his career high with 12 points, but the third-seeded Southern New Hampshire University men's basketball team was stopped by second-seeded and No. 18/25 Bentley University, 73-46, in the NCAA Division II East Regional Championship semifinals Sunday evening at Saint Anselm College's Stoutenburgh Gymnasium.
STANDOUT PERFORMERS
- Grant – 12 points (3-5 FG, 1-2 3-FG, 5-6 FT), 6 rebounds
- Sophomore Ethan Okwuosa (No. Haven, Conn.) – 10 points (4-13 FG, 1-4 3-FG, 1-2 FT), 7 rebounds, 2 steals
KEY MOMENTS
- Bentley led, 6-5, a little over three-and-a-half minutes into the contest when it used a 10-2 run to grab a 16-7 advantage with 13:04 remaining in the opening half. A 14-2 run just over a minute later widened the gap to 30-13 with 5:37 to play. Bentley scored the final five points of the half to bring a 41-20 advantage to the locker room.
- The margin was 20 less than four-and-a-half minutes into the second stanza when Bentley scored 11 straight as part of a 19-5 blitz that gave it the largest lead of the contest at 65-31 with 8:24 to play. Southern New Hampshire stopped the bleeding with a 10-2 run – powered by five points from Okwuosa – to trim the deficit to 67-41 with under four minutes left.
INSIDE THE BOX SCORE
- Junior Matt Becht (Vienna, Va.) netted six points (2-11 FG, 2-2 FT).
- Graduate student Ryan Layman (Wrentham, Mass.) scored five points (2-3 FG, 1-1 FT).
- Freshman Sam Kodi (Manchester, N.H.) added four points (2-3 FG).
- Sophomore Evan Guillory (Springfield, Mo.) tallied two points (1-5 FG) and three rebounds.
- Junior Noah Kamba (Lynn, Mass.) chipped in two points (2-2 FT).
- Freshman Royce Williams (Manchester, N.H.) scored three points (1-1 FG, 1-1 3-FG) and grabbed a rebound in three minutes off the bench.
- Sophomore Brenden Choate (Nashua, N.H.) added two points (1-1 FG) and a rebound in the same three minutes.
- During a 14-4 run for Bentley in the middle half of the opening stanza, the Falcons held the Penmen without a field goal for 7:51 of game time.
- Bentley outshot Southern New Hampshire, 50.9 percent (29-57) to 28.1 percent (16-57), including 39.1 percent (9-23) to 13 percent (3-23) from behind the arc.
- SNHU shot it better from the line, 84.6 percent (11-13) to 75 percent (6-8).
- The Penmen received more scoring from their bench (23-11), while the Falcons captured the glass (44-28) and the paint (30-16), scored more points off turnovers (12-8) and second chance points (15-8), and turned in a better assist-to-turnover ratio (10/9-3/6).
NOTES
- Southern New Hampshire had won 17 of its last 19 and 11 of 12.
- Bentley, ranked 18th in the latest D2SIDA Media Poll and 25th in the National Association of Basketball Coaches (NABC) Division II Coaches Poll, has won six of its last eight.
- The Penmen, making their 21st appearance in the NCAA postseason and first since 2017, dip to 28-21 (.571) all-time in the NCAA Championship, including 3-6 in the semifinal round and 0-2 versus Bentley. The Falcons defeated SNHU, 90-84, on their home floor in the 2005 regional semi.
- Bentley leads the all-time series with SNHU, 33-28. While the teams have split the last 24 meetings, the Falcons have captured seven of the most recent 10 and five of six. The teams split the regular-season series, as Bentley scored a 78-60 win in Manchester on Nov. 22, before the Penmen returned the favor with an 81-76 triumph in Waltham on Feb. 1.
