The CCSU Blue Devils men’s basketball team lost a tough 80-59 outing against the visiting LIU Sharks on Saturday, Jan. 31.
LIU and CCSU were the top two teams in the Northeast Conference in overall record, with LIU sitting at 13-8 and CCSU at 11-9, but the Sharks had only one loss in conference play to the Blue Devils’ four, putting CCSU in fifth place in conference play while the Sharks led the NEC. The high-pressure mid-major matchup was broadcast nationally on ESPNU.
Although LIU scored the first points of the game a minute in, Central jumped out to an early lead in the first half, with shots from Nico Ashley and Melo Sanchez leading the way. A few LIU fouls followed as the Blue Devils pulled out to their biggest lead of 10, nine minutes into the game. The Sharks fought back, with layups and 3-point shots making up the main bulk of LIU’s scoring. Although Central kept the game close with multiple blocks and buckets from Max Frazier contributing to a one-point game at the half, LIU took a 37-36 lead.
The game remained close as play resumed in the second half, with Daniel James scoring off the bench as Central kept LIU within a score for the first three minutes, until a sequence of layups and fouls for the Sharks extended their lead to 10 points nine minutes in, and Central was unable to recover. Despite contributions from Ashton Reynolds and Roddy Jones, LIU’s defense was able to stifle any momentum CCSU could generate, and its offense continued to blaze through the second half, with the final score ending at 80-59 in favor of the Sharks.
The contest extended LIU’s lead atop the NEC standings by two games over Le Moyne, while Central fell to seventh in the standings with a .500 record in conference play.
The bulk of LIU’s points came unexpectedly from Mason Porter-Brown, who dropped a career-high 29 points (including 17 in the first half) despite averaging just 6.1 points per game entering Saturday.
CCSU’s head coach Patrick Sellers described him as “a massive problem for us.”
Jamal Fuller and Shadrak Lasu also reached double figures for LIU.
Central struggled with turnovers and generating offensive momentum throughout the game, especially in the second half, which led to no Blue Devil scoring more than 15 points. Frazier led the way alongside Jay Rodgers with 14 points apiece, while Darin Smith Jr. added 10 points as well. Frazier also led the way with eight rebounds.
Sellers spoke at length about the loss, emphasizing that his team will have its work cut out for the rest of the season and complimenting LIU on a strong performance.
“They have a lot of talent. Coach Strickland has done a great job with them, and you can tell they’ve gotten better and better and better,” he said.
Sellers specifically discussed LIU’s prowess in the fast break.
“It’s so fast,” he said. ”They can kill you on a make or miss with a head full of speed. It’s really hard to stop the transition.”
He was able to find some positives despite not getting the results he wanted.
“Right now we’re down, but we had two very good defensive games this week,” he said. “We only got one win, sometimes that’s basketball.”
With the Division II to Division I transitional period still in effect for Mercyhurst and Le Moyne (the two schools ahead of Central in the NEC standings), many have penciled in Central and LIU as contenders for the NEC Championship Game in March, which Central lost last season to St. Francis.
When asked about his chances to return to the title game, likely against the Sharks, Coach Sellers was optimistic.
“I think we’re that good. We ran some good offense, we just didn’t make shots,” he said. “We can score with these guys. The way we have to beat them is to get back in transition and keep them off the glass. They’re relentless.”
The Blue Devils will try to get back on track at Detrick Gymnasium on Feb. 5 to host Chicago State.
