MU story for Press
Sorry..forget to post the link to the story..well, hasn't seemed to matter!
By TONY GRAHAM
STAFF WRITER
NEW YORK - It seemingly has always been the
Monmouth University men's basketball team
making key plays down the stretch.
At last that was a theme that has been followed successfully for
most of the last six seasons with the
Hawks either going to the NCAAs or at least making a run.
But not this year, not over the last two weeks, and certainly not
Monday night.
""We're losers right now,'' said Monmouth senior Marques Alston after the
Hawks again faded late and fell at St. Francis, N.Y., 69-57, to
drop all four games of a Northeast Conference road trip.
For the second game in a row on the disastrous journey
Monmouth (7-12, 2-5) failed in
the waning moments, much as it did Saturday in a defeat at Central
Connecticut.
Monday it came up empty
on six consecutive possessions after two free
throws by John Bunch lifted the Hawks within one point of the Terriers (5-16,
3-6) with with 4:24 remaining.
""This program hasn't been in this situation in a long time,'' said Alston
who joined Dejan Delic as Monmouth's 16th player to score 1,000 career
points with 12 Monday night.
Delic became No. 15 Saturday.
""We can't have these close games and then come down and turn the ball over
two, three times in a row, and shoot air balls,'' said Alston Monday.
"""We've got to value the ball. We haven't been valueing
the ball especially in situations where it's a close game.''
Rookie Jhamar Youngblood (16 points, five assists, two steals) had two of
his three turnovers as the game slipped away, Whitney Coleman had another,
Bunch failed
on a one-and-one, and
Youngblood also missed two shots as he tried to stem the tied.
Robert Hines, a 6-6 junior, led St. Francis with 20 points and grabbed nine
rebounds.
He keyed a 12-0 run by St. Francis with a three
that made it 61-54, and added two dunks
that brought the tiny crowd of 226 fans at Peter Aqilone Court to its feet.
St. Francis opened a 67-54 lead with 48 seconds showing.
The latest setback dropped Monmouth into 10th place in the 11 team NEC, two
positions out of the eighth and final NEC Tournament playoff berth.
""The last thing I'm worried about right now is standings,'' said Dave
Calloway, Monmouth coach.
""I'm worried about this team, whether we can get any better. Because right
now we're going in the wrong direction.''
Alston said he was stunnned by the results of the road trip. ""I
never thought we'd lose all four games,'' he said.
""We went out to Sacred Heart (the first game on the trip)
and we didn't perform,''said Calloway.
""We're up 15-6 at Sacred Heart and from that point on we didn't play to win,
we didn't play as a team.''
Monday Monmouth battled back from a nine-point deficit in the first half to
forge a 45-43 lead on a Coleman right corner 3 with 11:14 left.
But it followed that with a string of six unproductive possessions that
included two missed threes, a Corey Hallett air ball, and two turnovers.
""That's the thing,'' said Alston. ""We get it together, start to make
little runs,'' he said.""Then when it comes down to the end of the games we've got to
learn to close teams out, put teams away.''
""You've got to value that possession, '' said Calloway. ""You've got to make sure you get a
great shot. We just throw the ball away.''
Monmouth appeared to bolster its bench before the game when senior point
guard Mike Shipman (fouled out in 17 minutes) regained academic eligibility
after a seven-game absence
and even seldom used freshman Rickie Crews also played a
few scoreless minutes in the first half. Their presence allowed
Calloway 10 scholarship
players available at tip off for one of the few times since early in the
season.
""I'm just trying to find five guys rght now,'' said Calloway. ""I had
five for the second half of the Central game (Saturday) but that was one half
and we still lost.''
Monmouth spent the bulk of the first half climbing out of a nine-poinmt hole
, finally drawing even at 27-27 on an Alston layup.
But the Terriers closed the half on a Sheppard three-point play and then
two two foul shots to drop Monmouth behind again, 34-29.
Youngblood had 10 first half points for Monmouth when
Calloway was using more combinations than a lock smith.
Shipman made his first appearance since climbing out of academic purgatory
with 13 minutes
left in the half and Crews, in just his second game of the
season, entered less than a minute later.
But nobody had a handle on St. Francis junior guard Jamaal Womack,
a 35-per cent 3-point shooter, who bagged three of four from downtown
and Monmouth was also cuffed around on the glass,
17-10.
St.Francis took a 23-14 lead on a three-point play by 6-8
junior Bassith Yessoufou with 7:09 showing.
Senior Allen Sheppard tied his season high with 19 points for Saint
Francis.
e-mail tonygsports@aol.com.
By TONY GRAHAM
STAFF WRITER
NEW YORK - It seemingly has always been the
Monmouth University men's basketball team
making key plays down the stretch.
At last that was a theme that has been followed successfully for
most of the last six seasons with the
Hawks either going to the NCAAs or at least making a run.
But not this year, not over the last two weeks, and certainly not
Monday night.
""We're losers right now,'' said Monmouth senior Marques Alston after the
Hawks again faded late and fell at St. Francis, N.Y., 69-57, to
drop all four games of a Northeast Conference road trip.
For the second game in a row on the disastrous journey
Monmouth (7-12, 2-5) failed in
the waning moments, much as it did Saturday in a defeat at Central
Connecticut.
Monday it came up empty
on six consecutive possessions after two free
throws by John Bunch lifted the Hawks within one point of the Terriers (5-16,
3-6) with with 4:24 remaining.
""This program hasn't been in this situation in a long time,'' said Alston
who joined Dejan Delic as Monmouth's 16th player to score 1,000 career
points with 12 Monday night.
Delic became No. 15 Saturday.
""We can't have these close games and then come down and turn the ball over
two, three times in a row, and shoot air balls,'' said Alston Monday.
"""We've got to value the ball. We haven't been valueing
the ball especially in situations where it's a close game.''
Rookie Jhamar Youngblood (16 points, five assists, two steals) had two of
his three turnovers as the game slipped away, Whitney Coleman had another,
Bunch failed
on a one-and-one, and
Youngblood also missed two shots as he tried to stem the tied.
Robert Hines, a 6-6 junior, led St. Francis with 20 points and grabbed nine
rebounds.
He keyed a 12-0 run by St. Francis with a three
that made it 61-54, and added two dunks
that brought the tiny crowd of 226 fans at Peter Aqilone Court to its feet.
St. Francis opened a 67-54 lead with 48 seconds showing.
The latest setback dropped Monmouth into 10th place in the 11 team NEC, two
positions out of the eighth and final NEC Tournament playoff berth.
""The last thing I'm worried about right now is standings,'' said Dave
Calloway, Monmouth coach.
""I'm worried about this team, whether we can get any better. Because right
now we're going in the wrong direction.''
Alston said he was stunnned by the results of the road trip. ""I
never thought we'd lose all four games,'' he said.
""We went out to Sacred Heart (the first game on the trip)
and we didn't perform,''said Calloway.
""We're up 15-6 at Sacred Heart and from that point on we didn't play to win,
we didn't play as a team.''
Monday Monmouth battled back from a nine-point deficit in the first half to
forge a 45-43 lead on a Coleman right corner 3 with 11:14 left.
But it followed that with a string of six unproductive possessions that
included two missed threes, a Corey Hallett air ball, and two turnovers.
""That's the thing,'' said Alston. ""We get it together, start to make
little runs,'' he said.""Then when it comes down to the end of the games we've got to
learn to close teams out, put teams away.''
""You've got to value that possession, '' said Calloway. ""You've got to make sure you get a
great shot. We just throw the ball away.''
Monmouth appeared to bolster its bench before the game when senior point
guard Mike Shipman (fouled out in 17 minutes) regained academic eligibility
after a seven-game absence
and even seldom used freshman Rickie Crews also played a
few scoreless minutes in the first half. Their presence allowed
Calloway 10 scholarship
players available at tip off for one of the few times since early in the
season.
""I'm just trying to find five guys rght now,'' said Calloway. ""I had
five for the second half of the Central game (Saturday) but that was one half
and we still lost.''
Monmouth spent the bulk of the first half climbing out of a nine-poinmt hole
, finally drawing even at 27-27 on an Alston layup.
But the Terriers closed the half on a Sheppard three-point play and then
two two foul shots to drop Monmouth behind again, 34-29.
Youngblood had 10 first half points for Monmouth when
Calloway was using more combinations than a lock smith.
Shipman made his first appearance since climbing out of academic purgatory
with 13 minutes
left in the half and Crews, in just his second game of the
season, entered less than a minute later.
But nobody had a handle on St. Francis junior guard Jamaal Womack,
a 35-per cent 3-point shooter, who bagged three of four from downtown
and Monmouth was also cuffed around on the glass,
17-10.
St.Francis took a 23-14 lead on a three-point play by 6-8
junior Bassith Yessoufou with 7:09 showing.
Senior Allen Sheppard tied his season high with 19 points for Saint
Francis.
e-mail tonygsports@aol.com.
posted by Tony Graham at 1:14 AM
2 Comments:
OK...I have to vent a little myself here, but not about the game.
I hate this trip (s) to Brooklyn with a passion. Every mile on the BQE is like zig zagging through a traffic mine field.
On the way home..anyone know another way back from SFNY without making that death defying entrance onto the BQE off Atlantic Avenue?
That's where west bound traffic is rushing around the corner at you like crazed buffalo.
Then at the bridge the guy in front of me banged into another car as he as trying to veer into the cash line from the EZ pass lane.
Man..at least MU could have won the game!!!
Is there public transportation to LIU? I'm sure it's a much more pleasant drive to.....say.....the Yukon?
Nah...might have been coach Krayl though!
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