New Bobcats Lead Quinnipiac to Win Over Fairleigh Dickinson

Rob Rasmussen/Quinnipiac Athletics

Ross Meglin, Jon Surratt, and Jack Main
November 25, 2020

Highlights by Jack Main

Postgame wrap by Jon Surratt

Story by Ross Meglin

Off-season questions were answered, and new questions began after Quinnipiac men’s basketball’s big 84-66 win over Fairleigh Dickinson on Wednesday afternoon in Hamden.

Young Bobcat stars were born. Off-season questions about how much we would see of the new recruits were answered. The answer: A lot. And not just because of the lopsided victory.

The first half was tight. The largest lead was just seven points. Head coach Baker Dunleavy trusted his new weapons in multiple situations and had first years Bol Akot, Tymu Chenery, and Luis Kortright on the court at the same time with sophomore JUCO transfer Elias King.

”You just don’t know until you give them that first game,” Dunleavy said. “Sometimes they’re scared, sometimes they’re hesitant, they’re nervous. Our guys weren’t.”

In their Quinnipiac debuts, Akot led the team with seven assists, Chenery scored 11 points and grabbed six rebounds, Kortright added four of each, and King scored 11 points and pulled down nine boards.

“It was pretty easy at first,” King says, “Of course I was nervous playing in my first real ‘college’ game, but my teammates really helped me a lot. They picked up my energy.”

Quinnipiac spread the wealth offensively with 10 of 12 Bobcats who saw the court scoring a bucket. Five of those 10 scored in double-digits.

Another offseason question surrounded Savion Lewis and his role on the 2020-2021 team. Lewis delivered by leading the team with 12 points in his 17 minutes on the court.

Also with 12 points was sophomore Seth Pinkney, who is stepping into the role of the team’s main big man. Dunleavy isn’t asking Pinkney to perform like Kevin Marfo from last year, but he likes the progression and how the team is stepping up to fill the void.

“I think Seth really worked on his touch around the rim, on his free throws, his technique, he’s worked really hard at it,” Dunleavy said. “He can play above the rim. If our guys can get him the ball above the rim consistently then that’s a very scary position for a defense.”

Quinnipiac now has a week to prepare for their next game. Sunday’s game versus Maine has been cancelled because of Maine athletics on pause due to positive Covid-19 tests.

Next Wednesday, Quinnipiac will face Drexel in the Basketball Hall-of-Fame Tip-Off Tournament at Mohegan Sun Arena in Uncasville, Connecticut. The time of the game has yet to be announced.

It’s worth noting that the Quinnipiac women’s basketball team cancelled their Hall-of-Fame Challenge game slated to happen on Nov. 28 and 29 due to UConn reporting positive Covid-19 tests.