Waleed Farid had 18 points and 13 rebounds as Stevens knocked off St. Joseph's, 77-68. |
PATCHOGUE, N.Y. (February 21, 2006) – Sophomore guard Waleed Farid (Woodside, N.Y.) and junior forward Tim Williams (Selden, N.Y.) scored 18 points apiece as Stevens Institute of Technology collected its first-ever win in the Skyline Conference Men’s Basketball Championship with a 77-68 victory over No. 4 seed St. Joseph’s College (16-10) in the quarterfinals on Tuesday in Patchogue, N.Y. The fifth-seeded Ducks (15-11) have now won four straight games and will advance to play top-seeded Farmingdale State University (20-5) in the semifinals on Thursday. Tip-off is slated for 7 p.m. in Farmingdale, N.Y.
Farid was 5-for-10 from the floor and connected on seven of 12 free-throw attempts to go along with his 13 rebounds. Williams was 7-for-12 from the field and pulled down 11 rebounds. Freshman guard Virgil Gray II (Elmwood Park, N.J.) put together a solid effort in his first career playoff game as he scored 14 points. Gray was a perfect 8-for-8 at the foul line. Senior guard Isaac Moore (Phoenix, Ariz.) added 10 points.
The turning point in the game occurred with 6:46 remaining on the clock. With his team trailing by five points, St. Joseph’s sophomore forward/center Chris Niblock (Bayport, N.Y.) was fouled on a drive to the hoop by junior guard Floyd Morris (East Windsor, N.J.). After the whistle had blown, Niblock received a technical foul when he threw a forearm into the back of Morris. The technical resulted in the fifth personal foul on Niblock as he fouled out of the game. After checking in for Niblock, junior guard Brian Fenton (Levittown, N.Y.) stepped to the line and knocked down a pair of free throws as the Golden Eagles moved to within 60-57.
Following the two free throws from Fenton, Gray calmly stepped to the line and canned a pair at the other end as Stevens reestablished a five-point lead. Gray’s free throws triggered a 6-0 run by the Ducks as Stevens grabbed a 66-57 lead with 5:39 remaining. Williams nailed a key jumper and Farid added two clutch free throws during that burst.
With the Ducks leading by four with just over a minute to go, Morris knocked down one of two attempts at the line. After a turnover by Fenton, Williams came up with a big offensive rebound of a miss by Farid and scored on the put-back. Following another costly turnover by the Golden Eagles, Morris drained two free throws as Stevens opened a 75-66 lead with 36 seconds remaining.
After struggling from the line for most of the game, Stevens made six of seven free throws in the final 73 seconds as the Ducks held off a St. Joseph’s team that had won five straight and eight of 10 games to end the regular season.
The Golden Eagles were led by junior guard/forward Jorge Martinez (Brentwood, N.Y.), who scored a team-high 16 points and pulled down six rebounds. Freshman guard David Acree (Wheatley Heights, N.Y.) added 15 points. Sophomore guard Phil Lipari (Massapequa, N.Y.) chipped in with 13 points.
Neither team was able to take control in the first 10 minutes of the contest. Leading 20-17 midway through the first half, Stevens went on a 13-0 run in the span of 2:11 to grab a 33-17 advantage with 7:11 remaining. Williams started the run with a jumper. Gray followed with a jumper of his own. Freshman guard Damien Palantino (Philadelphia, Pa.) added a three-pointer from the wing. Gray scored the next four points before Farid tipped in a missed free throw by Williams.
Trailing 35-19 with just over four minutes to go in the half, St. Joseph’s put together a 15-1 spurt in a three-minute stretch as the Golden Eagles closed to within two points (36-34) with 1:19 on the clock. Acree drained three straight three-pointers in a 79-second span at the tail-end of the run.
With the Ducks leading 40-34 at the break, Stevens came out of the locker room on a 12-2 spurt in the first six minutes. Moore and Farid connected on three-pointers just 37 seconds apart as the Ducks’ lead grew to 52-40.
Down 56-47 midway through the second half, the Golden Eagles battled back once again as they closed to within 56-53 with 8:54 remaining. Lipari and Martinez made key three-pointers in the burst for St. Joseph’s.
Up next for the Ducks is a date with the Skyline regular-season champion Farmingdale, which owns an 11-1 record at home this season. In the only match-up between these two teams, the Rams rolled to a 91-73 victory at home on February 8. Senior forward Kenny McMillan (Bronx, N.Y.) paved the way for Farmingdale with 37 points. The Rams advanced to meet the Ducks in the semifinals by knocking off the U.S. Merchant Marine Academy, 98-72, on Tuesday.
