FLUSHING, N.Y. – As non-conference play continued for the Queens College men's basketball team Saturday afternoon, the Knights welcomed the undefeated Tigers of Holy Family University to Flushing Saturday afternoon.
Three Knights registered in double figures led by a season-high 22 points
(7-18 FG) from senior
William Ellis (Valley Stream, N.Y.), while fellow senior
Tyler Carey (Bay Shore, N.Y.) and sophomore
Shamar Chester (Queens, N.Y.) combined for 22 points as the Knights turned a back and forth back game into an 11-3 blitz to emerge victorious Saturday afternoon.
With a 75-61 victory, the Knights moved to 2-2 on the young season. The Saturday victory over the Tigers was the first victory over the CACC opponent in four attempts.
Game Recap
It was a shaky start for the Knights who took their last game turnovers into Saturday's afternoon non-conference action as they committed three turnovers as the Tigers opened the game on a 7-0 run.
Trialing 7-0, Ellis would convert two free throws at the 16:51 mark to get the Knights on the board.
Sophomore
Sunnie Diamond (Hiram, GA) would knock down two more free throws from the charity stripe as the Knights were still without a field goal conversion. Trialing 11-4, Chester would hit the first field goal of the game for Queens at the 15:35 mark from long distance to bring the Knights within 11-7.
After the Tigers extended their lead back to seven, 14-7, junior
Malik Bentinck (Queens, N.Y.) would start a 10-2 run from 15:01 to 11:48 with Chester knocking down two shots from long distance as the Knights took their first lead of the game with a 17-16 by the U12 media timeout.
Despite the Knights continuing to limit the Tigers, they would struggle on their offensive end as they went 1-6 from the field from the 11:15 mark to the 6:26 mark before Carey converted two free throws to bring Queens within one, 22-21.
Trailing by one, Ellis and Diamond would combine for a quick 8-0 run from 5:27 to 3:49 to take a seven-point edge of 29-22 with 3:47 left in the first half.
Both sides would match each other with buckets but a layup by Diamond with 57 seconds left until halftime would ensure Queens took a six-point advantage of 35-29 into the locker rooms.
After the Knights missed the first attempt of the second half, the Tigers would trim the Knights' lead down to three from long distance before Ellis tallied back-to-back jumpers to extend the lead up to seven, 39-32 with 18:38 left in the game.
Holy Family would continue to trim the Knights' deficit before a layup by the Tigers tied the game at 46-46 with 12:37 left in regulation.
Both teams would struggle to find any scoring from 12:37 to 10:14 before an Ellis shot from long distance put the Knights back up by three, 49-46.
But the Tigers would quickly respond and tie the game before another scoreless drought came about for both teams.
With the game tied 51-51, sophomore
Jayden Seraphin's (Lakeview, N.Y.) four points would start a 9-1 run for the Knights as they took a 60-52 lead with 5:19 left in the game.
After Holy Family trimmed Queens' lead down to three points, 60-57, a 13-0 run blitz from the 3:34 mark to 1:38 would seal the game for the Knights as Ellis notched seven points to give Queens their largest lead of the afternoon of 16 points, 73-57.
The Knights would close out the game with no trouble as they ended the Tigers' undefeated streak to start the season with their second victory of the season and their first victory over Holy Family in program history.
Game Highlights
- Three Knights recorded double figures led by Ellis's season-high 22 points (7-18 FG) with eight rebounds.
- While Chester tallied 11 points (4-9 FG) with four rebounds and five assists, and Carey notched 11 points (3-3 FG) and a team-high two blocks.
- Diamond recorded nine points (3-13 FG) with five rebounds, a career-high seven assists, and one steal.
- Off the bench, Bentinck knocked in eight points (3-8 FG) and season-high 11 rebounds.
- The Knights forced 11 Tigers turnovers for 26 points and won the rebounds battle with a slim 43-42 advantage to record a 10-8 second chance points advantage.
- On the afternoon, Queens shots 39.1% with a 25-64 field goal performance, while the Tigers went 19-57 from the field with a 33.3% shooting performance.
NEXT GAME: Head coach
Matt Collier and the Knights conclude the homestand before the Thanksgiving break on Wednesday (Nov. 23) evening as Alliance University comes to town.
Tip-off is set for 6:00 P.M.
Live Stats: Men's Basketball | Live Stream: ECC Network
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