PROVIDENCE, R.I. - Behind four double-digit scorers and a double-double from senior Justice Washington (Hamden, Conn.), the Albertus Magnus College men's basketball team earned its seventh Great Northeast Athletic Conference (GNAC) win of the season, defeating the Wildcats of Johnson & Wales University by a final score of 71-55 Tuesday evening.
Terry Dawkins (Bronx, N.Y.) led the offensive attack with a 21-point performance behind 10-of-15 shooting from the floor. The next double-digit scorer was Washington, who recorded his sixth double-double of the season with 13 points and 13 rebounds. Rounding out the double-digit scorers were Kevin Crawford (Bridgeport, Conn.) and Tazhon Daniels (New Haven, Conn.) with 12 and 10 points, respectively.
THE BASICS
Final: Albertus Magnus 71 | JWU 55
Records: Albertus Magnus (8-7, 7-2 GNAC) | JWU (6-9, 3-5 GNAC)
Box Score
HOW IT HAPPENED
- Albertus came out of the gate with the hot hand as the Falcons opened regulation with a 15-0 lead behind five different scorers, including six points from Dawkins.
- A layup from Aireus Raspberry at the 14-minute mark broke the scoreless drought and ignited an 8-0 Wildcat spurt that cut the deficit to seven, 15-8, and forced Coach Oliver to call a timeout with 12:59 left on the clock.
- Out of the break, Albertus resumed control of the game by pushing its lead back up to double digits, 29-14, following a 14-6 run capped by a deep three from Daniels.
- The final 5:23 of the first half saw the Wildcats respond with a huge 16-8 run to trim their deficit to seven, 37-30, heading into the halftime break.
- The blue-and-white wasted no time pushing its lead back to 13, 45-32, after opening the second half with an 8-2 run, highlighted by three points from Washington and Antonio Bonilla (Tenafly, N.J.).
- A deep trey from Raspberry at 15:30 halted the run, but back-to-back jump shots from Dawkins and Bonilla increased the Falcons' lead to 14, 49-35.
- Over the next four minutes of play, Albertus and JWU countered each other's made basket until back-to-back baskets from Raspberry and Josh Zangerle brought the Wildcats to within 12, 59-47, and forced the Falcons to call a timeout with 9:03 remaining.
- From that point on, Albertus maintained its double-digit lead and the closest JWU got to within the Falcons was at the 5:43 mark as Raspberry hit a pair of free throws, bringing the score to 13, 63-50.
TEAM STATS
Albertus: 43.1% FG | 23.5% 3PT | 31.3% FT
JWU: 36.8% FG | 15.8% 3PT | 58.8% FT
PLAYER HIGHLIGHTS
Albertus:
Terry Dawkins - 21 points (10-15 FG, 1-4 FT) | 7 rebounds | 1 assist | 1 steal | 1 block
Justice Washington - 13 points (6-9 FG, 1-2 FT) | 13 rebounds | 2 assists | 2 blocks
Kevin Crawford - 12 points (5-8 FG, 2-4 FT) | 4 rebounds | 2 steals
Tazhon Daniels - 10 points (4-8 FG, 2-3 3PT) | 1 rebound | 2 assists
JWU:
Aireus Raspberry - 26 points (10-23 FG, 1-8 3PT, 5-6 FT) | 6 rebounds | 2 assists | 4 steals
Josh Zangerle - 12 points (4-15 FG, 1-8 3PT, 3-4 FT) | 10 rebounds | 1 steal | 2 blocks
NOTEWORTHY
- The Falcons are now 29-29 all-time against the Wildcats.
- With tonight's victory, Coach Oliver is two W's shy of the 300-win plateau with 298.
- Washington recorded his sixth double-double of the season.
- Dawkins netted 20+ points in back-to-back games.
- Crawford scored in double-figures for the second time this season.
- Washington posted 13 rebounds in back-to-back games.
UP NEXT
The men's basketball team takes a break from conference play as the Falcons travel to New London, Conn., for a non-conference showdown against Connecticut College on Thursday, Jan. 19, at the Luce Fieldhouse. Tip-off is set for 7 PM!