February 18, 2009
MBB: JOHNSON'S CAREER-HIGH 25 POINTS LEADS DOLPHINS TO 86-65
VICTORY AT SAINT MICHAEL'S
Colchester, Vt. - Freshman guard Chris Johnson
(Lindenhurst, N.Y./Lindenhurst) scored a career-high 25
points to lead the Le Moyne College men's basketball team to an
86-65 Northeast-10 Conference victory at Saint Michael's on
Wednesday night at the Ross Sports Center.
Johnson, named the conference's freshman of the week on Monday,
tallied 18 of his game-best total in the second half on 7-of-9
shooting, including 4-of-6 from three-point range. Junior forward
Laurence Ekperigin (Cortlandt Manor, N.Y./Walter
Panas), named the conference's player of the week for the
seventh time this season on Monday, registered his 19th
double-double of the year with 13 points and a game-high 10
rebounds. Sophomore forward Kevin Roth (Lake View, N.Y./St.
Francis) posted 14 points and eight rebounds (five
offensive), while senior swingman Phil Barnes (Georgetown,
Cayman Islands/Clinton C.C.) added 11 points. Tyler
Schilling, second in the Northeast-10 Conference in rebounding
behind Ekperigin, scored a team-high 13 points, but was held to
just three rebounds. Jon Zylstra was the only other Purple Knight
in double-figures, posting 10 points.
Le Moyne used an 21-10 streak over the opening six and one-half
minutes of the second half to push out to a game-high 21 point
lead. Barnes hit a layup from the left side, junior guard
Damani Corbin (Brooklyn, N.Y./Frederick Douglass)
hit a jumper from the right side and Johnson hit a three-pointer
and a pair of mid-range jump shots to start the streak. Barnes
drilled a three-pointer from the left corner at the 13:57 mark to
cap the span.
Saint Michael's whittled its deficit to 14 with 8:16 remaining
with a 17-10 run, but could get no closer the rest of the contest.
Chris Hurley hit a pair of three pointers from the left corner and
two foul shots and Schilling made a pair of baskets to lead the
Purple Knights. Following 5-0 runs by each team, the Dolphins
rattled off a 9-2 run to regain the 21 point advantage. Junior
forward Eduardo Archibold Brown (Panama City,
Panama/Mercershure Academy/U. of West Georgia) ignited the
run with a pair of foul shots and a layup. Junior guard Daniel Jason (Germantown, N.Y./Germantown) closed out the contest's
scoring with a layup off a feed from freshman guard James Cormier (Trumbull, Conn./Trumbull/Proctor Academy
(N.H.)).
Barnes opened the contest with back-to-back three-pointers from
the left wing and Cormier followed with a three-pointer of his own
from the left wing as the Dolphins jumped out to a 9-0 lead just
2:16 into the game. Following an alley-oop dunk by Ekperigin off a
feed from Cormier, the Purple Knights ran off seven straight points
to pull within a basket.
The Dolphins answered back with a 16-4 run to open up their
largest lead of the half at 27-13 with 8:14 left in the stanza.
Johnson came off the bench to hit a pull-up jumper and a
three-pointer and Roth made a pair of layups to lead the surge.
Saint Michael's closed the half with 13 of the final 20 points to
pull within 34-26 at the intermission. Alex Berthiaume accounted
for eight points on a pair of three-pointers and a fast-break layup
in the stretch.
Le Moyne (16-10, NE-10 12-9), which has won seven straight games
to register its longest winning streak since the 1998-99 season,
closes out the regular season on Tuesday, Feb. 24 at Southern
Connecticut State at 7:30 p.m. With the victory, the Dolphins
clinch a home game in the opening round of the Northeast-10
Conference tournament.
-agate-
Le Moyne 86,
Saint Michael's 65
Le Moyne (16-10, NE-10
12-9)
34
52
-
86
Saint Michael's (8-15, NE-10 5-15)
26
39
- 65
