Box Score BRIDGEPORT, Conn. - Freshman
Joey Wallace (Rochester, N.Y.) scored 10 of his 16 points in the second half and
Michael Mallory (Waterbury, Conn.) and
Desmond Williams (Torrington, Conn.) scored a combined 38 points to propel No. 19 nationally ranked Southern Connecticut State University over Bridgeport 104-96 in the Bridgeport Classic-Conference Challenge Sunday evening.
With the win, the Owls improve to 2-0 on the young season, while Bridgeport falls to 0-2.
A dunk by
Eric Ross (Chicago, Ill.) gave the Owls a 16 point lead, their largest of the game, with 11:19 left to go. Bridgeport cut the lead to 7 with 6:31 remaining, but could not get any closer.
Southern Connecticut shot 12-of-20 from the free throw line in the second half, but went 1-of-7 from 8:01 to 4:38.
Bridgeport missed a key opportunity with 4:23 remaining when it missed two three pointers in one possession. Mallory responded by hitting his fourth three pointer of the game. After a missed jumper by Bridgeport's Devon Elliot, Wallace hit a second straight three for the Owls, extending their lead to 14. Wallace went 5-of-7 from the field and 2-of-3 from deep. Stefano Osuji converted a four point play on the following possession for the Purple Knights, but Southern hit 7-of-9 free throws in the final 3:29 of the game to seal the victory.
The game was back and forth to start with Bridgeport leading by as many as seven midway through the first half. Then, Mallory began and capped off a 13-4 Owl run with 2:40 remaining in the first half and the score tied at 43. He made two free throws to break the tie, then made two three pointers in the final 44 seconds to give SCSU a nine point lead at the half, their biggest at the time. Mallory finished the game with 20 points, seven rebounds and four assists.
Bridgeport stayed in the game in the first half mainly because the Owls committed 15 fouls, eight in the first five minutes. The Purple Knights were able to convert 25-of-27 of their free throws. They went 9-of-19 from the field in the first half. Bridgeport's Muhammed Ahmed went 10-of-11 from the free throw line in the first half and 4-of-7 from the field, good for 18 points. He would finish with 22 points and did not attempt a free throw in the second half.
Southern Connecticut's next game is at Adelphi on Wednesday at 7:30 p.m.
