NCAA Liveblog: Judges advance 74-60 over Scranton
Published: March 6, 2009Section: Breaking News
5:10 pm SETTING UP
Good evening everybody, this is Zachary Aronow live from Lancaster, PA. Tonight the Brandeis Judges men’s basketball takes on Landmark Conference Champion Scranton University Royals.
You follow the action along live on wbrs.org where I will serve as second color/stats tonight.
With around 45 minutes until tip off, here are the probable starters for both teams. Positions go from guard to forward.
UPDATE: #14 Eli Londo is starting in place of Paul Hawk.
Brandeis: #1 Andre Roberson ’10, #4 Kevin Olson ’09, #25 Kenny Small ’10, #52 Rich Magee ’10
Scranton: #22 Ryan Fitzpatrick, #25 Zach Ashworth, #30 Luke Hawk, #34 Paul Biagioli, #44 Paul Hawk
A brief aside, I ran into Assistant Coach Eric McKoy and he told us that the team was in good health. He stated that they were “whooping and hollering it up” so things may be looking up for the Judges. Before the trip, Head Coach Brian Meehan had expressed concern about the number of players he would have available to him due to the flu.
Stay tuned for regular updates.
5:35 WARM UP
We are currently 16:20 away from the opening tip and both teams are out on the court. We are positioned behind one basket, facing the court lengthwise. Right now, Brandeis is warming up on our end, practicing lay ups. The Judges will be playing as the home team in this match up although due to geographical proximity, Scranton is expected to enjoy a bigger turnout.
On the other end, clad in purple and black are the Scranton Royals. So far, from what I have seen, the Royals are very sharp shooters, making long distance attempts with ease. By contrast, the Judges appear to be having some difficulties and also rather worrying is how pale Olson, DeLuca and Magee are. Still, shooting during warm ups are one thing, what happens when the ball is tipped is a completely different story. Stay tuned for further developments as we get ready for do or basketball. This is March Madness!
FIRST HALF
Brandeis wins the tip, collects two offensive rebounds and collects the first points courtesy of Steve DeLuca. Scranton however has responded with seven unanswered points and three blocked shots.
So far, Brandeis is not getting not getting into a rhythm. Kevin Olson has missed two straight shots and the team has had to deviate from their outside inside game. The inside game has opened up though as Rich Magee now has four straight points. Roberson follows with a basket on a turnover, Brandeis now up by one with 11 minutes to go in the first half.
Very physical game, neither side is getting the outside shot. Olson has now missed his third straight off the front rim. Unit out there for Brandeis: Small, DeLuca, Tyrone Hughes ’12, Christian Yemga ’11 and Terrell Hollins ’10.
7:49 — First Brandeis three converted by Kenny Small who appears to be the only Brandeis shooter not snake bit.
7:06 — Another time out, Scranton is outshooting Brandeis 64% to 39% but Brandeis has the edge with points off turnovers and also has the edge on rebounds. 21-21 all with 7:00 to go.
3:05 — Time out called, Brandeis up by two following a three by Kenny Small, Steve DeLuca has been very aggressive as well, drawing a very hard foul on Ryan Fitzpatrick. Scranton already has 8 fouls. Although Scranton has the shooting touch but Brandeis is dominating the rebounds and steals.
One minute left to go, Brandeis up by five. Steve DeLuca has been a man possessed and Scranton cannot take care of the ball, losing it three straight times now. Kenny Small ends the half with the three, 37-31 Brandeis.
HALFTIME NOTE
Surprisingly this game has not been defined by the three point shot. This not to say it is due to a lack of effort from either side. Scranton has had the hot shooting hand, converting 13-20, a 65% rate. By contrast, the Judges have 33 attempts, 14 made for 42.4%.
Kevin Olson has struggled so far, going 1-4. Stepping though has been Kenny Small, leading the scoring with 13 points on 4-7 shooting, 3-4 from the three point line. Steve DeLuca is close behind with 11 points and six rebounds. Scranton is being paced by Eli Londo with 8 points.
For their sharp shooting, Scranton has been done in by turnovers, however Brandeis has not capitalized as effectively as they could. Still, the commanding edge in steals 6-1 Brandeis, a 10-5 margin in turnovers. The Royals though have a commanding 7-0 edge in blocked shots.
We’re looking at a close finish here, we’ll see which team survives another day.
SECOND HALF
With 13 minutes left, Brandeis is starting to pull away as Scranton has started to go cold and Brandeis is now running around uncontested for the second chance rebounds. Judges have a 16-5 edge on offensive rebounds.
Terrell Hollins has been dominating the paint and with a time out, Brandeis is up 52-40. This is the first time Hollins has reached double digits in scoring since Feb. 15.
Kevin Olson nails his second three of the game, 55-41 and Brandeis is starting to pull away with ten minutes to go.
With 2:30 left to go in the game, Brandeis is now up big, 72-56 and both sides are pulling out their seniors. It may be as close to a white flag as one can see. Beau Bonness ’11, Vytus Kriskus ’12 and John Weldon ’10 are in the game now for the Judges. Also in now is Jamie Shannon. Scranton also has pulled out most of their regulars.
With ninety seconds left to go, I feel confident enough to say that the Brandeis Judges will face the winner of Franklin&Marshall/Wesley match. 74-58 Brandeis.
Judges run out the clock, final score Brandeis 74, Scranton 60