PROVIDENCE, R.I. – Sixth-seeded Saint Joseph's College (19-7) upset #3 Johnson & Wales University (13-13), 83-80, in a Great Northeast Athletic Conference (GNAC) Men's Basketball Tournament Quarterfinal on Tuesday night.
PLAYOFF IMPLICATIONS:
With the victory Saint Joseph's advances to the second round of the GNAC tourney for the first time since 2015 and will host #5 University of Saint Joseph (15-11) in a semifinal matchup on Thursday at 7:00 PM. The Blue Jays picked up their first men's basketball postseason victory with an upset 95-84 win at #4 Suffolk University in other second-round action this evening.
With the loss, the Wildcats' hopes of winning consecutive GNAC Championships are dashed as their 2018-19 season comes to a close.
HOW IT HAPPENED:
The Monks came out firing and held a 25-11 lead after senior guard Darian Berry (Rochester, N.H.) made a layup with 11:33 left in the first half. The Wildcats whittled away at the deficit and cut the SJC cushion down to six points (37-31) when junior guard Brian Hogan-Gary (Staten Island, N.Y.) dunked on a fast break to cap a 10-5 surge just over five minutes later.
Saint Joseph's countered with a 14-7 run during the remainder of the opening frame and carried a 51-38 advantage into intermission.
The Monks extended their lead to a game-high 22 points when senior guard Jack Hostetler (Somers, Conn.) netted a three-pointer with 14:14 left in the contest. The night was far from over however, as the Wildcats cut the SJC cushion down to single digits on the heels of a 15-4 run with a Randall Ferdinand (Pembroke Pines, Fla.) layup making it a 75-68 game with 4:55 left.
Sophomore guard Jack Casale (Portland, Maine/Cheverus) drilled a three-pointer 65 seconds later to lift his team to an 80-70 lead, but Johnson & Wales responded with eight straight points as senior forward Matt Madoian (North Kingstown, R.I.) nailed a trifecta with 1:35 remaining to make it a one-possession game (80-78).
On the Wildcats' next trip down the floor, Casale forced a turnover and senior guard Ian Mileikis (Auburn, Maine) was fouled and made both freebies to extend the SJC edge to 82-78 with 53 seconds left. Hostetler was 1-for-2 from the line to make it an 83-78 game with 12 seconds left and Hogan-Gary made a layup seven seconds later, but the Wildcats' surge proved to be too little, too late.
STATS OF THE GAME:
Three-point shooting proved to be the difference, as the Monks made 15-of-32 attempts from downtown for a 46.9% clip while the Wildcats shot just 29.4% (5-17) in the narrow setback.
LEADERS – SAINT JOSEPH'S:
- Berry netted 25 points with eight rebounds and three assists
- Casale posted his 10th double-double of the season with 20 points and 12 rebounds
- Mileikis added 15 points on 6-for-7 shooting
- Hostetler added 10 points off the bench
LEADERS – JOHNSON & WALES:
- Hogan-Gary led all players with 32 points and added eight rebounds, three assists, and three steals
- Ferdinand poured in 18 points off an 8-for-11 shooting effort with eight boards
- Sophomore guard Donovian Maxfield (York, Pa.) chipped in with 13 points, six assists, four caroms, and three steals
HISTORICALLY SPEAKING:
Saint Joseph's improves to 12-14 all-time versus Johnson & Wales University and has now defeated the Wildcats in consecutive meetings on the road for the first time in the history of the matchup.
