NEW HAVEN, Conn. - The Southern Connecticut State University men's basketball defeated New York Institute of Technology, 95-61, in their final non-conference game of the season at James Moore Field House. The Owls improve to 12-8 overall, while the Bears fall to 4-17 overall.
Junior Greg Jones (Bronx, N.Y.) scored a game-high 27 points and shot 10-for-15 from the field, including 4-for-7 from three-point range. Senior Taurus Adams II (Milwaukee, Wisc.) added 22 points on 9-for-16 shooting while going 3-for-4 form beyond the arc. Junior Khalil Richard (Baltimore, Md.) shot 6-for-7 from the field and went a perfect 3-for-3 from three-point range, on his way to scoring 15 points. Freshman Lyron Bennett (Boston, Mass.) scored 11 points, went 5-for-10 from the field and recorded five steals.
How It Happened
- The Owls jumped out to an early 11-2 lead with 17:03 remaining, forcing the Bears to call timeout.
- After the timeout, New York Tech went on a 12-6 run to cut Southern's lead to 17-14 with 11:04 remaining. Bennett then made a three-pointer to ignite a 13-4 run for Southern, extending their lead to 30-18 with 5:54 remaining.
- New York Tech converted on a three-point play, cutting the lead back to single-digits, but Southern went on a 10-3 run, highlighted by seven points from Richard, to take their largest lead of the half at 40-24. Southern would take a 45-31 into halftime.
- Adams II scored seven of the Owls' next 15 points, as Southern opened up a 60-37 lead with 13:53 to go.
- With the score 62-42, Southern went on a 25-9 run over a span of 11:14 to take an 87-51 lead, their largest of the game. Southern went 11-for-14 from the field and made all four of their three-point attempts and force seven New York Tech turnovers. Southern finished the game going 4-for-4 from the field and winning, 95-61.
Player Game Notes
- Jones scored at least 25 points for the third time this season, all of which have came in the last five games.
- Jones has made 26 of his last 28 free throw attempts dating back to Jan. 8 against Adelphi.
- Adams II has scored in double-figures in 15 of his 17 games played, and has scored at least 20 points in four games this season.
- Adams II is shooting 55 percent (11-for-20) from three-point range since the start of January.
- Richard has scored at least 15 points in six of his last 10 games.
- Bennett's five steals were a career-high, and the most by a Southern player since Desmond Williams (Torrington, Conn.) had five against Le Moyne on Feb. 20, 2016.
- Bennett became the first Southern freshman with at least five steals in a game since Trevor Harris recorded five against Assumption on Jan. 20, 2007.
Team Game Notes
- The Owls shot a season best 58.2 percent from the field and 65.0 percent from beyond the arc.
- Southern's three-point percentage was their fourth best in program history, and their best in a game since Feb. 12, 2018 against Jefferson when they went 9-13 and shot 69.2 percent.
- This is the third game this season the Owls have had two 20-point scorers, as they also did so on Nov. 13, 2019 against Caldwell and Nov. 23, 2019 against Concorida.
- Southern recorded a season-high 26 assists and had a season-low eight turnovers, good for a 3.25 A/TO. The last time the Owls had an A/TO that high in a game was on Jan. 6, 2016 against Saint Michael's, when they had 25 assists to just seven turnovers (3.57 A/TO).
- The Owls' defense had a season-high 12 steals, their most in a game since Feb. 21, 2017 against Pace.
- Southern's defense also forced a season-high 22 turnovers.
- Southern has allowed 70 points or fewer in five of their last six games, dating back to Jan. 18 against Saint Michael's.
- The Owls 34-point margin of victory was their largest of the season, and the second time this season they have won by at least 30 points and third time they have won by at least 25 points. Southern previously defeated Concorida, 110-77, on Nov. 23, 2019 and University of the Sciences on Dec. 14, 2019.
- The last time Southern had at least three wins by 25 points, and 30 points, in a season was during the 2014-15 season. Southern had six wins by at least 25 points that season, and four wins by at least 30 points.
- Southern finished the non-conference schedule with a 5-2 record, their most wins since winning five during 2014-15 season.
- The Owls have won nine consecutive non-conference home games, dating back to the 2016-17 season.
Up Next
Southern travels to Springfield, Mass. to take on American International College on Saturday, Feb. 8, 2020 at 3:30 p.m.
