RINDGE, N.H. – The
Chris Alesi era officially got underway Monday evening as the Queens College men's basketball team opened its 2026-27 campaign on the road against the Franklin Pierce University Ravens inside The Fieldhouse in Rindge, New Hampshire.
In a contest that saw 12 Knights find the scoring column, the rookie trio of
Melo Mojeed,
RJ Walker, and
Nico Esposito combined for 43 points to lead Queens to an 82-57 season-opening victory. Mojeed paced all scorers with a game-high 18 points as the Knights started the Alesi era on a winning note.
With the victory, Queens opens the season with a win for the first time since the 2022-23 campaign. In just the third meeting between the two programs in program history, the Knights earned their first-ever victory over Franklin Pierce. Monday's win also marked Queens' first road victory to open a season since defeating Assumption University on November 11, 2016.
Game Recap
A layup from junior
Jabari Phillip got the scoring underway for Queens at the 18:59 mark as both teams traded baskets throughout the opening eight minutes of the contest.
Trailing 12-11, Esposito knocked down a three-pointer to spark a 7-3 Knights run, giving Queens an 18-15 advantage with 11:10 remaining in the first half.
The Ravens responded with an 8-4 run to reclaim the lead, 23-22, with 4:59 remaining.
However, the Knights closed the half with their strongest scoring stretch of the period, putting together a 14-6 run over the final 4:05. Mojeed led the charge with seven points as Queens shot 5-of-6 from the field while forcing three Ravens turnovers and limiting Franklin Pierce to 2-of-5 shooting. The late run sent the Knights into the locker room with a 36-29 lead.
Carrying a seven-point advantage into the second half, Queens continued to build momentum with a 6-3 run to open the period. Junior
Lleyton Fried, Mojeed, and rookie
Jaden Howard all contributed to the scoring stretch as the Knights extended their lead to 42-32 by the 16:54 mark.
The Ravens managed to cut the deficit to seven points on two separate occasions, but the duo of Walker and sophomore
Jawuan Smith helped spark an 11-6 run to push the Knights' advantage to 13, 53-40, with 12:32 remaining in the contest.
From there, balanced scoring across the lineup and a strong defensive effort helped Queens maintain its double-digit advantage for the remainder of the game. The Knights continued to pull away, extending their lead to as many as 27 points before securing the 82-57 road victory to open the season and give Alesi his first win as head coach of the program.
By The Numbers
- Mojeed led all scorers with a game-high 18 points on 6-of-12 shooting from the field while going a perfect 5-of-5 from the charity stripe.
- Walker finished with 14 points on 4-of-6 shooting, including a perfect 3-of-3 from beyond the arc, while adding six rebounds, four assists, and two steals.
- Esposito contributed 11 points, connecting on 3-of-4 attempts from three-point range.
- Phillip tallied seven points and recorded two steals.
- Smith recorded a career-best performance with seven points, a team-high 10 rebounds, and one steal.
- Fried finished with six points, a career-high seven assists, four steals, and three rebounds.
- As a team, the Knights shot 48.3% from the field, including 55.5% in the second half, while converting 76.0% of their free-throw attempts.
Next Game
Queens opens a two-game homestand on Friday, November 13, as the Knights host the ECC x NE10 Conference Challenge at Fitzgerald Gymnasium. Queens will open the challenge against the Pace University Setters, with tip-off scheduled for 5:00 p.m.
For the latest news on Queens College Athletics, follow the Knights at queensknights.com or via social media on Facebook (Queens College Athletics), X Athletics Main Account (@QCKnights), Queens College MBB (QCKnightsMBB) and Instagram (qcknightsny), men's basketball (qcmensbball).
