Central Connecticut State University men’s basketball team defeated Long Island University on their home court at Detrick Gymnasium, Thursday, Jan. 27. The final score of 65-62 snapped a six-game losing streak.

This marked the second time this season that these two teams have faced off against each other.

The first match up was just a couple weeks ago on Saturday, Jan. 15. The Sharks defeated the Blue Devils in that game by a total of 22 points, the largest deficit CCSU has suffered in conference play so far this season. So, the Blue Devils have been waiting to get some revenge on the Sharks for the beatdown they suffered the first time they met.

LIU jumped ahead early in the game by scoring seven straight points. It was all Sharks for much of the first half and looked to be a repeat of the first time these two teams faced off against each other.

LIU was led by forward Tyrn Flowers form Waterbury, CT. Flowers scored six consecutive points to help push LIU’s lead to 29-10 with 9:17 remaining in the first half. He went on to finish the game with a double-double that included 22 points and 11 rebounds.

The Blue Devils couldn’t get things going until late in first half when an 8-1 run brought them within ten at halftime. Junior guard, Ian Krishnan, led the way for the Blue Devils in the first half by hitting four three-pointers.

LIU led 39-29 to open the second quarter but CCSU started the second half right where they left off in the first and scored seven unanswered points to trim LIU’s lead to just three points. Krishnan continued his hot shooting in the second half and finished the game with a team high of 19 points that included going 6-8 from behind the three point line.

A layup from freshman center, Jayden Brown, gave CCSU a 60-58 lead with 3:03 left in the game. LIU answered right back with a dunk from senior Eral Penn to tie the game up at 60-60.

A few possessions later, with just 0:37 left on the clock, Krishnan nailed one of his six threes and put the Blue Devils up for good. LIU scored once more to make it 63-62 with just 0:22 seconds left to play but CCSU was able to ice the game with a pair of free throws to make the final score 65-62 with the Blue Devils coming out on top.

The Blue Devils shot 43% from the field while the Sharks only managed to make 38% of their shots. Central also had an advantage at the free throw line where they went 10-14 compared to LIU who only made 6-13 free throws.  CCSU’s freshman guard Andre Snoody led the Blue Devils in rebounds with nine, while junior guard Nigel Scantlebury led the team with five assists.

Up next for the Blue Devils is a road match up against Fairleigh Dickinson University on Sunday, Jan. 30.

This will be the first game against FDU this season for the Blue Devils. They will look to push their wining streak to two games as the Knights currently hold the only record worse than Central this season with a 1-5 conference record and a 1-15 overall record.