By Pat Tintle
Sports Editor
The men’s basketball team hosted another 6-6 Atlantic 10 team last Wednesday, but fell to Richmond 71-56. The Spiders improved to 14-12 (7-6), while the Bonnies fell to 13-11 (6-7).
With freshman guard Jaylen Adams out for the season with a broken finger, junior guard Iakeem Alston started the game with a steal, but lost control after poor ball handling. That opening play would be the story throughout the night for the Bonnies – impressive plays tarnished by later turnovers.
A quiet first half from junior guard Marcus Posley led the Bonnies to a nine-point deficit at halftime, 32-23 Posley went 0-6 from the field in that time, paired with his 0-4 performance from behind the arc.
However, the Bonnies started the second half with renewed confidence. The team opened the half with a 4-0 run. Posley got on the board with back-to-back fast break layups, which led to a 13-2 run to put the Bonnies up 52-42, their largest lead of the night. But Richmond responded with a 14-0 juggernaut run. The Spiders never looked back and took the win in front of the Bonnies’ home crowd.
“We didn’t play great in the first half,” Coach Mark Schmidt said. “But I though we came out in the second half, for the first eight minutes, I thought we played terrific. We defended, we rebounded and we took care of the basketball. Mooney called a timeout and everything changed.”
The Bonnies’ struggles were evident in their 18 rebounds, but only 10 second-chance points.
“With 18 offensive rebounds, you have a chance to get 51 points,” Schmidt said. “We got 10. We missed so many easy baskets, layups. When you’re struggling from the three-point line, we need to make those gimmies. You can’t do that against a team like Richmond.”
The loss was the Bonnies’ second of the season to the Spiders, who beat Bonaventure 60-41 on Jan. 11.
Senior center Youssou Ndoye finished the game with a double-double. Ndoye had 12 points, 10 rebounds, three blocks and three steals in his productive night. However, Ndoye stated that the Richmond defense is a tight group to penetrate.
“They’re the only team that plays match-up zone in this league,” Ndoye said. “You have to adjust to their defense. I think that’s what we haven’t been doing. We just need to get back to practice tomorrow and try to get better, just fight through adversity right now.”
The Bonnies only have five games left in regular-season play. As the A-10 tournament approaches, Ndoye wants the team to move on from this loss and focus on the bigger picture – Brooklyn.
“Right now, I’ve been saying this the past couple days, you have to play your best games,” Ndoye said. “It’s championship time now. There’s only a few games left until we go to the Barclays Center. Every time we have a bad game, we want to erase it and have a short-term memory. It’s frustrating to lose, but we have to go to the next game.”
Despite the three-game losing streak, Ndoye is sure that his team will remain confident.
“We’re never going to lose confidence until the end,” Ndoye said. “The league is tight, so if you lose your confidence, then you’re going to get exposed. That’s the last thing you want to do.”
Alston recorded nine points against the Spiders. But his one assist and four turnovers left the point guard disappointed in his performance.
“I turned the ball over way too much,” Alston said. “I tried to play hard, but I realized we were fouling too much. We’re trying to force it (in the paint), and they want us to throw it in, knowing that everybody will collapse.”
The Bonnies next game will be in Philadelphia as they face St. Joseph’s at 7 p.m. tomorrow. The game will be broadcast on SNY.
