Complete Game Notes as a PDF

TWO GAMES IN THE WEEK AHEAD
The Southern Connecticut State University men's basketball team (2-22, 1-18 NE-10) is coming off a week in which the team went 1-1. This week, they will face two more Northeast-10 opponents as they reach the end of the 2008-09 campaign. On Wednesday, Feb. 18, Southern hosts No. 19 Bentley. Tip-off is scheduled for 7:30 p.m. at Moore Field House. A few days later, the Owls travel to Massachusetts for a NE-10 road game against Merrimack. The game is scheduled for Saturday, Feb. 21 at 3 p.m. Saturday's game is the team's last away game of the season.

OVERTIME THRILLER
On Tuesday, Feb. 10, the Owls faced off against St. Michael's for the second time this season and first time at Moore Field House. The Purple Knights forced overtime but the Owls remained composed. In the final five minutes, freshman guard Chris Harris took control and dropped two buckets to tie the game at 64-64. With 31 seconds remaining, senior guard Terron Jones was fouled and sent to the line. He hit one of two foul shots to give his team the lead and the victory, 65-64.

LEADING THE OWLS TO VICTORY
In the game against St. Michael's (2/10), Terron Jones had the game of his career. He dropped 21 points on 8-for-11 shooting and grabbed 11 boards, both career-highs. Most importantly, his performance led the Owls to their first Northeast-10 win. Jones was also 5-for-6 from the line and made the game winning foul shot with 31 seconds remaining to defeat St. Michael's in overtime, 65-64. The Purple Knights had no answer for Jones as he continuously made great back-door cuts for easy lay-ups.

SCOUTING BENTLEY
Bentley is riding a hot streak as they have now won 13 straight and have moved up to No. 19 in the coaches' poll. They rank atop the Northeast-10 with a 16-3 conference record and an overall mark of 22-4. They are led by junior guard Jason Westrol (17.4 points per game) and senior guard Lew Finnegan (16.9 points per game). Both guards shoot slightly over 50% from the field and as a team shoot 47%. The Falcon live and die from behind-the-arc. They average close to nine three-pointers per game and shoot 37% from downtown.

SCOUTING MERRIMACK
Merrimack ranks fourth in the conference with a record of 13-6 and 18-6 overall. They have won their last two games versus Franklin Pierce and at Pace. Their top scoring offense (80.8 points per game) is led by junior guard Darren Duncan. Duncan is the leading scorer in the NE-10 with 19.9 per game and he also leads the conference in assists with 7.13. He is followed by sophomore Darin Mency with 16.3 per game. As a team, the Warriors shoot 43% from the floor, 33% from behind-the-arc and 71% from the line.

COMING UP SHORT
On Thursday, Jan. 22, the Owls traveled to Felician College for a non-conference road game. Down by four with 23 seconds remaining in the second half, junior Derrick Corbett entered the game and gave the Owls the spark they needed. Corbett came off the bench and hit a lay-up right away to cut the margin to two. The Owls then sent Ethan Kennedy to the line as he went 1-for-2 to give Felician a 79-76 lead with seven seconds left. Southern went right back to Corbett as he nailed one from downtown with one second remaining, lifting his team into overtime. In the OT, Corbett dropped another three and the Owls looked as if they were headed toward victory. However, Felician responded by hitting back-to-back three's to tie the game at 86. The Owls had a chance to end the game but a missed lay-up followed by a defensive rebound and a foul, sent Richard Fegins to the line with half a second remaining. He hit one of two foul shots as the Owls left New Jersey with a devastating loss, 87-86. Despite falling short, the Owls showed improvement as their 86 points was their highest scoring output of the season.

GUARD CONTRIBUTION
Senior guard Justin Gardenhire and junior guard Derrick Corbett accounted for 28 of the team's 38 second half points in a losing effort to Merrimack on Saturday, Jan. 17. Corbett dropped a season-high 20 points in the game as he led the team in scoring for the third straight contest. In that span, he posted 15 at Franklin Pierce, 19 at UMass-Lowell and 20 versus Merrimack. During those three games, Gardenhire increased his scoring output as well. Against Merrimack, Gardenhire tallied all of his 15 points in the second half and dropped 12 a game earlier at UMass-Lowell, going 8-for-10 from the line.

CAREER HIGHS
Three Owls set new career highs as they fell short to Pace at home on Tuesday, Nov. 25. John Mazzarella netted 20 points, outscoring his old career high by nine. He also posted a career high in assists with five. Kieran Ramsey set career highs in points (17) and rebounds (17) in only his fifth game with the Owls. Lance Long set a new career high in points with eight and Andrew Zito tied his at 10.

DOWNLOW PRESENCE
Junior center John Mazzarella and freshman forward Kieran Ramsey had a combined 46 rebounds in two conference games on Nov. 19 and Nov. 22. Mazzarella had back-to-back games with a career-high 15 rebounds a piece and totaled six blocks. Against St. Rose (11/22) he dropped a double-double with 10 points and 15 boards. On Nov. 22, Ramsey recorded his second double-double in only his fourth game with the Owls and set a career-high 16 points against Saint Michael's.

OWLS ON THE HONOR ROLL
Senior guard Terron Jones and junior center John Mazzarella have earned recognition on the Northeast-10 Conference weekly honor roll this season. Jones was selected on Feb. 16 for his play against St. Michael's and Stonehill. Mazzarella was selected twice, once on Dec. 1 for his performance against Pace and the second time was on Dec. 15 for his performances against Stonehill and New Haven.

RETURNING A STRONG LINEUP
SCSU will look for its veterans to lead the team this season as they welcome back 10 returning players from last year's squad. Three of the team's top four scorers in 2007-08 return to the team's lineup including seniors Justin Gardenhire and Preston Bell as well as junior Trevor Harris.

WELCOME ABOARD
The Owls welcome two newcomers to this year's team including freshmen guard Chris Harris and forward Kieran Ramsey.

IN THE NORTHEAST-1O PRESEASON POLL
The Owls have been ranked No. 15 in this year's Northeast-10 Preseason Coaches Poll.

ON DECK
The Owls return to action on Tuesday, Feb. 24 for their final game of the season against Le Moyne. Tip-off is scheduled for 7:30 p.m. at Moore Field House.