February 28, 2009
MBB: DOLPHINS OPEN NE-10 PLAYOFFS WITH 73-53 WIN OVER FRANKLIN
PIERCE
Syracuse, N.Y. - Sophomore forward Kevin Roth (Lake View,
N.Y./St. Francis H.S.) scored 14 points to lead four
players in double-figures as the sixth-seeded Le Moyne College
men's basketball team to a 73-53 win over 11th-seeded Franklin
Pierce in the opening round of the Northeast-10 Conference playoff
on Saturday afternoon at Ted Grant Court.
Roth scored seven points in each half, while also grabbing seven
rebounds and dishing out four assists. Junior forward
Laurence Ekperigin (Cortlandt Manor, N.Y./Walter
Panas), the 2009 Northeast-10 Player of the Year, tallied
12 points, but grabbed a season-low four rebounds. Freshman guard
Chris Johnson (Lindenhurst, N.Y./Lindenhurst), a
member of the conference's All-Rookie Team, and junior guard
Damani Corbin (Brooklyn, N.Y./Frederick Douglass)
each tallied 10 points. Jeff Manchester and Jack Barrett each
tallied 12 for the Ravens.
The two teams traded points over the opening five minutes of the
second half as the Dolphins help onto a 23-point lead. The Dolphins
used a 16-9 spurt over the seven minutes to take a game-best 30
point lead. Junior center Eduardo Archibold Brown (Panama
City, Panama/Mercershure Academy/West Georgia) tallied
consecutive layups and the start of the streak, while senior
swingman Phil Barnes (Georgetown, Cayman Islands/Clinton
C.C.) hit a pair of free throws and a three-pointer from
the left wing to cap the stretch.
The Ravens registered a 17-7 edge over the final seven minutes to
pull within 20 points at the final buzzer. Barrett hit a pair of
three-pointers from the top of the key and Adedamola Abu tallied
four points to lead the charge.
After the Ravens took an early 4-2 lead on a pair of baskets by
Terrell Ray, the Dolphins rattled off 10 straight points to take
the lead. Ekperigin started the run with a two-handed dunk off a
feed from Roth, freshman guard James Cormier (Trumbull,
Conn./Trumbull/Proctor Academy) hit a three-pointer from
the top of the key and Roth closed the streak with a conventional
three-point play. Manchester answered back with a three-pointer
from the left wing before the Dolphins embarked on a 31-9 run to
open up a 25 point lead. Johnson tallied seven points in the run,
while Ekperigin scored six and Corbin added five. Kinard Dozier
closed out the half with a driving layup from the right side to
deliver a 41-18 Le Moyne lead at the half.
Le Moyne (18-10), which has won nine straight games and 11 of its
last 12 contests, returns to action on Monday against third-seeded
Stonehill at 7:00 p.m. The 18 wins by the Dolphins are the most
since the 1997-98 season.
-agate-
Le Moyne 73,
Franklin Pierce 53
Franklin Pierce
(11-17)
18
35
-
53
Le Moyne
(18-10)
41
32
- 73
