SPARKILL, N.Y. – For the fifth straight game, the sophomore duo of
Sunnie Diamond (Hiram, GA) and
Tyron Wright (Camby, IN) led the Queens College men's basketball team offense as the duo combined for 42 points against the Spartans of Saint Thomas Aquinas College Wednesday evening in East Coast Conference action inside Aquinas Hall.
Game Recap
With Queens needing a win to keep their playoffs hopes alive, the Knights got off to a strong start with a 6-2 lead before the Spartans went on a 7-2 run to take a 9-8 lead with 16:48 left in the first half.
Queens would respond with a 6-0 run to take a five-point lead of 15-9 at the 14:20 mark before the home side tallied a 10-3 run for a slim lead of 19-18 by the 11:15 mark.
But two quick buckets from senior
William Ellis (Valley Stream, N.Y.) and sophomore
Jayden Seraphin (Lakeview, N.Y.) would help the Knights push ahead by three, 22-19 with 10:46 left until halftime.
Both sides would exchange buckets as the Spartans kept the game within one possession in the first half.
With the Knights leading 27-26 with 6:52 to go, Ellis and the Knights would go on a 9-2 run as they took an eight-point lead of 36-28 with 1:02 to go until halftime.
But the Spartans would end the first half on a 6-2 run to cut the Knights lead down to four, 38-34 heading into the locker rooms.
Both sides opened the second half knocking down their first two shots but with the Knights lead by four, 43-39, Diamond and Wright combined for a 10-1 run from 17:29 to 15:31 as they took a 13-point lead of 53-40 forcing a Spartans timeout.
The Spartans' timeout would break the Knights momentum as the home side went on a 15-0 run from 15:18 to 9:39 to reclaim a lead of 55-53.
A Seraphin's fast break dunk would break the scoreless drought for Queens at the 8:31 mark to tie the game at 55-55 as they started an 8-5 run to reclaim a three-point lead of 63-60 with 6:34 left in the game.
In a game of run that saw five ties and nine lead exchanges, the regional-ranked Spartans would use one final run of 11-4 to push away as they took a 71-67 lead with 1:30 left in the game before the home side eventually iced the game at the free throw line to hold off a Knights rally for a 76-74 victory Wednesday evening thus ending Queens final push for an ECC playoff spot.
By The Numbers
- Diamond led the Knights offense with a game-and-career 26 points (10-22 FG) while flirting with a second triple-double of the season recording 10 rebounds, a team-high seven assists and three steals.
- Diamond 10 made field goals are a career-high for the first-year Knight.
- The sophomore recorded his sixth 20-point performance of the season.
- Wright recorded 16 points (6-12 FG, 4-7 3PT) to go with six rebounds.
- Senior Tyler Carey (Bay Shore, N.Y.) fell short of a double-double notching nine points (3-7 FG) with a game-high 11 rebounds, two blocks, and one steal.
- Ellis recorded seven points (3-7 FG) to go with three rebounds, a career-high four blocks, and two steals on the evening.
- As a team, Queens shot 41.2% as they went 28-68 from the field while the Spartans went 28-76 shooting 36.8% on the evening.
- Queens won the boards battle (48-42), while the Spartans held a 11-10 edge on second-chance points.
- The Knights committed 22 turnovers to the Spartans' 11 as the home side recorded a 25-7 advantage on points off turnovers.
- At the free throw line, the Spartans went 13-19 (68.4%) compared to the Knights' 9-9 trip to the Charity stripe.
NEXT GAME: Head coach
Matt Collier and the Knights conclude the regular season on Saturday (Feb. 25) afternoon on Senior Day as they welcome the Mavericks of Mercy College to Flushing. Tip-off set for 1:30 p.m.
Live Stats: Men's Basketball | Live Stream: ECC Network
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