2008 Woodie Awards
Litke, Shubik light up Bobcats at QU
Men stay in tie for second with Wagner, turn towards first place Robert Morris
Pat Sullivan
Issue date: 2/28/08 Section: Sports
In a crucial match-up for the top seed in the NEC, the Sacred Heart Pioneers defeated the Quinnipiac Bobcats, 88-74, in front of a capacity crowd of 2,888 at the TD Banknorth Sports Center in Hamden.
The Pioneers had five players in double figures. Sophomore guard Ryan Litke was the key to the Pioneers offense with 13 of his 17 points coming during the second half.
"I felt like in the first half that we weren't playing with enough energy, I just tried to pick the guys up in the second and keep everyone upbeat," said Litke.
In the first half it seemed as though the Pioneers couldn't get going on offense. They only shot 41.2 percent compared to Quinnipiac's 58.3 percent.
Freshman forward Mehmet Sahan nailed a jumper to give Sacred Heart a 30-28 lead with 3:55 remaining in the first. Quinnipiac would then go on a 10-6 run to close out the first half and go into halftime with a 38-36 advantage.
The atmosphere in the TD Banknorth Center was electric, especially with the outcome of the game being vital to both teams.
"It's that time of year. We are fortunate to have come here and get this win," said head coach Dave Bike.
The second half started with a bang for the Pioneers. Sophomore guard Chauncey Hardy scored four quick points to put Sacred Heart back on top 40-38. However, Hardy's foul trouble would mean the Pioneers would need some quality minutes from Litke and fellow sophomore guard Corey Hassan.
The Pioneers were down 52-48 before a Litke three pointer cut the lead to 52-51. Moments later, Litke would hit another three to put the Pioneers up 54-52, a lead that they would not relinquish.
"Sacred Heart showed their experience in the second half, they were terrific," said Quinnipiac head coach Tom Moore.
"I thought our balanced scoring attack would be too much for them in the end. We just wanted to pick up the pace in the second half, get out on fast breaks, pick up the defense, rebound and run. We did that and Brice hit a huge three for us. That really took the wind out of their sails," said senior guard Drew Shubik.
The Pioneers had five players in double figures. Sophomore guard Ryan Litke was the key to the Pioneers offense with 13 of his 17 points coming during the second half.
"I felt like in the first half that we weren't playing with enough energy, I just tried to pick the guys up in the second and keep everyone upbeat," said Litke.
In the first half it seemed as though the Pioneers couldn't get going on offense. They only shot 41.2 percent compared to Quinnipiac's 58.3 percent.
Freshman forward Mehmet Sahan nailed a jumper to give Sacred Heart a 30-28 lead with 3:55 remaining in the first. Quinnipiac would then go on a 10-6 run to close out the first half and go into halftime with a 38-36 advantage.
The atmosphere in the TD Banknorth Center was electric, especially with the outcome of the game being vital to both teams.
"It's that time of year. We are fortunate to have come here and get this win," said head coach Dave Bike.
The second half started with a bang for the Pioneers. Sophomore guard Chauncey Hardy scored four quick points to put Sacred Heart back on top 40-38. However, Hardy's foul trouble would mean the Pioneers would need some quality minutes from Litke and fellow sophomore guard Corey Hassan.
The Pioneers were down 52-48 before a Litke three pointer cut the lead to 52-51. Moments later, Litke would hit another three to put the Pioneers up 54-52, a lead that they would not relinquish.
"Sacred Heart showed their experience in the second half, they were terrific," said Quinnipiac head coach Tom Moore.
"I thought our balanced scoring attack would be too much for them in the end. We just wanted to pick up the pace in the second half, get out on fast breaks, pick up the defense, rebound and run. We did that and Brice hit a huge three for us. That really took the wind out of their sails," said senior guard Drew Shubik.
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