By: Ryan Chichester
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The Quinnipiac men’s basketball team came into New Rochelle looking for a statement win. A validation of its three-game winning streak.
For 45 minutes, it looked like the Bobcats might get it.
Quinnipiac erased a seven-point deficit with 1:40 remaining in regulation to force overtime in one of the wildest finishes in the MAAC this season, but the heavily-favored Iona Gaels held off numerous Bobcat rallies to escape with an 87-82 win at home in double-overtime.
The Gaels have now won 32 of their last 39 conference home games.
“It’s a challenge for us to come (to Iona) and compete,” Baker Dunleavy said. “We were ready for the challenge, but just fell a little short.”
The Bobcats didn’t make it easy on the defending conference champs. With Iona seemingly in control in the closing minutes of regulation, Quinnipiac fought back and tied the game on a deep contested three from Cam Young.
Iona, the MAAC’s leader in free throw percentage, missed its last four foul shots in regulation while Quinnipiac clawed its way back. Young’s clutch triple accounted for three of his career-high 31 points, the first 30-point performance from a Bobcat in three years.
Iona looked in control again in the first overtime after senior Deyshonne Much scored five straight points to put Iona ahead, but Chaise Daniels made a running layup with four seconds left to extend an already wild game even further into the frigid night.
Iona would settle down from the free throw line to seal a narrow win in double overtime, bringing an end to the roller coaster ride.
“It was a war,” Iona’s Rickey McGill said, summing up the back-and-forth affair with four simple words.
Playing without deep threat Andrew Robinson, the Bobcats struggled from the three-point line, shooting 8-for-31 from beyond the arc. But Quinnipiac stayed in the game thanks to its continuously improving defense that held Iona to just five three-pointers on the night.
“It helped to have a few days to prepare,” Dunleavy said of another strong defensive effort. “Credit to our guys for staying disciplined.”
Both teams struggled to get going, but were clearly pacing themselves for what would be a four-period marathon. A defensive-minded first half ended with a 32-28 Bobcat advantage.
Cam Young opened the second half with a thunderous dunk off a pump-fake to send the Bobcat bench into a frenzy and stretch the lead to eight.
Young’s highlight-reel dunk silenced the crowd, but woke up the Gaels.
Shadrac Casimir, unfazed by the aftershock of the Young slam, responded with a circus backwards layup despite a hack from Rich Kelly to spark a quick 15-2 run for the Gaels to take their first lead since the midway mark of the first half. The Quinnipiac defense that had slowed Iona to a crawl in the first 25 minutes began to show cracks.
Once again, Young provided a much-needed spark for the Bobcats, scoring five-straight points to regain a one-point lead at the midway mark of the second half. Iona made sure the spark didn’t turn into a flame by rattling off a quick 8-2 run to go back up five.
With the Gaels up five, Quinnipiac forced Iona deep into the shot clock, but McGill scooped up a loose ball and drove in for a layup just before the shot clock buzzer to seemingly bury the Bobcats. McGill, Iona’s leading scorer, finished with 17 points.
Quinnipiac, fighting until the end, capitalized on a pair of missed free throws from Iona and cut the lead down to two thanks to another three from Rigoni. After the Gaels missed another pair of free throws, Young went to the line for two with a chance to tie.
Young missed the second free throw, and a defensive breakdown led to an easy Iona bucket, but in the ultimate form of redemption, Young heaved a contested 30-footer with three seconds left to send the game into overtime. The madness was just getting started, but the end result put a stop to the Bobcats’ winning streak.
The streak is over, but the newfound respect for the upstart Bobcats continues.
“They’ve got a really good basketball team.” Iona head coach Tim Cluess said after letting out a long exhale.
