FLUSHING, N.Y. – Returning to non-conference action Wednesday evening the Queens College men's basketball team welcomed regionally ranked #5 Greyhounds of Assumption University to Fitzgerald Gymnasium.
In a game that featured 16 lead changes and eight ties, the Knights would go back and forth against the Greyhounds as senior guard
Nasan Ayala (LeFrak City, N.Y.) led the offense with a game-high 19 points, while the junior duo of forward
Jaden Pena (Brooklyn, N.Y.) and guard
Jade Tse (Queens, N.Y.) combined for 23 points but it would be the Greyhounds that would leave Flushing with a victory as Queens fell to the final score of 79-77 to conclude their 2024 home portion of the schedule.
GAME RECAP
Both teams opened the game trading points and with Queens trailing 7-6, a block from Ayala before Pena found senior center
Omar Nkonde (Harlem, N.Y.) for a dunk at the 15:28 would start a 5-0 run for the Knights as they took a 11-7 lead by the 14:45 mark.
As the Greyhounds attempted to cut into Queens lead down to two points on three occasions, timely buckets from the Knights would continue to keep the home side ahead.
Leading by two, 15-13 at the 11:28 mark, rookie guard
Tyler Michel (Cambria Heights, N.Y.) and senior forward
Jayden Seraphin (Lakeview, N.Y.) would notch back-to-back jumper to put Queens up by six, 19-13 with 10:42 left in the first half.
But as Queens went into a scoreless drought over the next two and half minutes of play, the Knights would continue to hold a two-point lead before a layup from Nkonde and a three-pointer from junior guard
Eric Tynes (Springfield, MA.) put Queens up by seven, their largest lead of the first half, 24-17 with 8:06 left until halftime.
However, the visitors would respond with an 8-2 run over the next three minutes of play to get within one, 26-25 by the 5:00 mark.
A jumper from Tse helped Queens extend their lead back to three points, 28-25 at the 3:37 mark before the Greyhounds answered with a 6-0 run to take a 31-28 lead by the 2:38 mark. But Tynes and Ayala combined for a 5-0 run to put Queens up by two, 33-31 at the 1:57 mark.
But the visitors would quickly answer with a 5-0 run to take a 36-33 lead but a jumper from Tse as the game clock expired ensured Queens only trailed by one, 36-35 heading into the locker rooms down by one.
The first half saw eight lead changes and two ties with Queens only trailing by 1.2% shooting from the field as Assumption shot 42.9% compared to Queens 41.7% and both teams tallying 15 made field goals each.
In a battle between two evenly matched teams, both sides combined to shoot 57.1% from the field with four made field goals each by the under-16 media timeouts as they went into the timeout tied 45-45 at the 15:49 mark.
Out of the timeout, Ayala and senior forward
Damiri Lindo (Oakland, CA.) helped Queens take a five-point edge of 50-45 by the 14:44 mark.
Queens would continue to hold a slim lead over Assumption as both teams continued to trade buckets.
Just as Assumption reclaimed a lead, a layup from senior guard
Shamar Chester (Queens, N.Y.) would tie the game at 58-58 with 10:06 left.
But the Greyhounds answered with a 7-0 run to take a 65-58 by the 8:33 mark before Queens ended their scoreless drought at the free throw line as Michel knocked down two free throws at the 7:06 mark.
However back-to-back three-pointers from the visitors would see them take their largest lead of the game of nine points, 71-62 by the 6:31 mark.
Queens would rally behind a Michel three-pointer and a layup from Tse in quick succession as the home side put together an 11-2 run from the 5:56 mark to the 3:41 mark to tie the game at 73-73.
As the Knights' defense continued to hold the Greyhounds scoreless, a second chance bucket from Pena helped Queens go up 75-73 with 2:43 to go in the game.
But the Greyhounds would convert on a second chance opportunity of their own to tie the game at 75-75 with 2:00 left in the contest.
With 1:07 left in the contest, Ayala would convert two free throws to put Queens back up to the score of 77-75.
However, it would be the visitors who would leave Flushing with a victory as they finished the final 48 seconds of the game on a 4-0 run to defeat Queens to the final score of 79-77 Wednesday evening.
BY THE NUMBERS
- Ayala paced the Knights' offense with 19 points, four rebounds, two assists, one block, and one steal.
- Pena recorded his third double-double of the year and second straight with 12 points, tied a career-high 15 rebounds to go with two blocks, two assists, and one steal.
- Tse recorded 11 points and two steals off the bench.
- The duo of Lindo and Nkonde combined for 16 points, four rebounds, three assists, and one block.
- Michel recorded a career-high seven points, three rebounds, and two assists in his second career start.
NEXT TIP-OFF
The Knights conclude the 2024 portion of the schedule with a road trip to Philadelphia, PA on Saturday, Dec. 21 as they match up against the Tigers of Holy Family University. Tip-off is set for noon.
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