BROOKLYN, N.Y. - Thursday marked another "Standalone game" for the St. Francis Brooklyn men's basketball team. The Terriers played host to Northeast Conference (NEC) foe Central Connecticut State (CCSU) on Thursday afternoon at The ARC in the two foes' final meeting of the season.
St. Francis held the Blue Devils to the lowest total field goal total of any of their NEC opponents this season in a low-scoring affair as the Terriers won their third straight with a 53-48 victory.
HOW IT HAPPENED
The Terriers pounded the paint in the opening eight minutes, scoring six of their first ten from the field to jump out to a 13-4 lead. Central swung the momentum back, dropping two of the Blue Devils three-pointers on the day in a 13-4 slide to take their first lead of the day, 19-18.
The game played even through the final six minutes of the first half, as it look to be the last team with possession taking an advantage to the locker room at the half. The Terriers head down court after Josiah Harris pulled down a free throw miss by Kellen Amos. Di'Andre Howell-South took the ball on the wing and swung the ball to Michael Myrie who drove from the perimeter to take a 24-23 lead.
After a pair of loose balls swapped possession twice, CCSU's Andre Snoddy had the chance to give the visitors the halftime lead but was bothered by Josiah Harris under the rim and Snoddy could not the get the shot off in time.
St. Francis looked to extend the lead coming out of the locker room as Harris scored baskets on back-to-back possessions and Tedrick Wilcox Jr. hit a pair of his own for a 9-3 run that gave the Terriers a 33-26 lead and forced Central to call its first timeout of the second half.
The Blue Devils seemed to have to answer to every run by the Terriers and hit their biggest run, 11-2, to take their first lead of the second half with 10:07 to play. Trey Rodgers dished one to Tre Breland, who lead CCSU with 12 points, to give Central a 37-35 advantage.
Despite a slow shooting day from both teams, the Blue Devils managed to retake the lead at the free throw line with 5:49 remaining. Harris and Zion Bethea snapped back with seven straight to give the Terriers a two-possession advantage, capped with Bethea's second triple of the afternoon for a 46-41 lead.
Bethea had the dagger in the final seconds; streaking from the perimeter unchecked to take Roy Clarke's feed off the inbound play to give the Terriers the 53-48 lead that would through the final seconds.
The win is the Terriers' first over CCSU in Brooklyn since 2019 and marks the Terriers third consecutive win in NEC play.
TEAM LEADERS
Tedrick Wilcox Jr. led the Terriers once again with 15 points on the day, adding six points and two assists.
Zion Bethea matched a game high with two three-pointers and finished the day with 14 points.
Josiah Harris finished with his fourth double-double of the season, logging 12 points and 15 rebounds. He added two blocks and two steals.
Roy Clarke handed out four assists, even with the game-high mark.
Clarke, Harris and Bethea combined for five blocks, the Terriers' tenth game this season with at least that many.
NEXT UP: St. Francis will hold its final Saturday home game this season as the Terriers host new NEC member Stonehill for the first time. Tip-off at The ARC is scheduled for 1:00 p.m.
