2008 Woodie Awards
Men's basketball to travel to #2 CCSU
Brian Fitzsimmons
Issue date: 3/2/06 Section: Sports
- Page 1 of 1
Monday night, men's hoops endured the hardest moment of the entire season, but it occurred off the court. They watched with vigilant eyes as Central Connecticut State and St. Francis tried to mow down Quinnipiac and Long Island University respectively, desperate for fate to hand them a tournament bid.
The variables that the Pioneers couldn't control unraveled in their favor, and they clinched the seventh seed in the Northeast Conference playoffs, despite ending the season on a 2-8 skid in their last ten contests. Their late season sins have the #2 seeded Blue Devils of CCS waiting for the underdogs in the Detrick gym tonight.
Events during the regular season suggest that Sacred Heart could repent and surprise the Devils with the level of play that was displayed before the near-suicide downfall.
On Jan. 9 at the Pitt Center, the Pioneers defeated CCS in a 74-71 thriller, which handed the Devils their first conference loss of the year. Kibwe Trim and Jarrid Frye combined for 46 of the 74 points, which was good enough to hold off Central's well-balanced offense. Four players scored 13 points or more and guard Justin Chiera nailed five three pointers.
On Feb. 18 in the Detrick gym, Central Connecticut State paid back the Pioneers for their loss five weeks earlier in a 73-56 blowout win. Once again, the Blue Devils had four members in double figures, but Trim's usual monstrous scoring total was not present, since he only managed eight points.
The Pioneers shot 44 percent from the floor, compared to the 59 percent they boasted in the Pitt Center win, and a 15 percent drop-off will be taken advantage of by any good team. That is just one of the reasons why the Blue Devils are the #2 seed.
The Pioneers (11-16, 8-10) will have their hands full trying to contain key offensive players Chiera, Tristan Blackwood, Obie Nwadike, and Lenny Jefferson.
Trim, who just enjoyed a 22-point and 11-rebound senior day this past Saturday, will need to keep Nwadike off the boards and score down low so the outside can open up for Frye, Drew Shubik, or Luke Granato.
It is crucial that Sacred Heart snaps out of its funk in time for tonight because the Blue Devils' talent is a lot more terrifying than their blue pitchfork.
The variables that the Pioneers couldn't control unraveled in their favor, and they clinched the seventh seed in the Northeast Conference playoffs, despite ending the season on a 2-8 skid in their last ten contests. Their late season sins have the #2 seeded Blue Devils of CCS waiting for the underdogs in the Detrick gym tonight.
Events during the regular season suggest that Sacred Heart could repent and surprise the Devils with the level of play that was displayed before the near-suicide downfall.
On Jan. 9 at the Pitt Center, the Pioneers defeated CCS in a 74-71 thriller, which handed the Devils their first conference loss of the year. Kibwe Trim and Jarrid Frye combined for 46 of the 74 points, which was good enough to hold off Central's well-balanced offense. Four players scored 13 points or more and guard Justin Chiera nailed five three pointers.
On Feb. 18 in the Detrick gym, Central Connecticut State paid back the Pioneers for their loss five weeks earlier in a 73-56 blowout win. Once again, the Blue Devils had four members in double figures, but Trim's usual monstrous scoring total was not present, since he only managed eight points.
The Pioneers shot 44 percent from the floor, compared to the 59 percent they boasted in the Pitt Center win, and a 15 percent drop-off will be taken advantage of by any good team. That is just one of the reasons why the Blue Devils are the #2 seed.
The Pioneers (11-16, 8-10) will have their hands full trying to contain key offensive players Chiera, Tristan Blackwood, Obie Nwadike, and Lenny Jefferson.
Trim, who just enjoyed a 22-point and 11-rebound senior day this past Saturday, will need to keep Nwadike off the boards and score down low so the outside can open up for Frye, Drew Shubik, or Luke Granato.
It is crucial that Sacred Heart snaps out of its funk in time for tonight because the Blue Devils' talent is a lot more terrifying than their blue pitchfork.