Men's Basketball Clips Pace in 2013-14 Opener, 84-82
Box Score
BROOKVILLE, N.Y. (Nov. 9, 2013) - In his Pioneers' debut, junior guard P.J. Torres (New Rochelle, N.Y.) notched a double-double showing with 27 points and 11 rebounds, as the LIU Post men's basketball team edged Pace, 84-82, in a fast-paced 2013-14 opener Saturday at the Pratt Recreation Center in Brookville, N.Y. Erik Smiles also picked up his first victory as the program's head coach.
Leading 6-4 just under four minutes in, the Pioneers (1-0) rattled off a 14-4 burst in a span of 3:21 to extend their lead to double digits (20-8) with 12:47 to go. Torres totaled nine of the points. Sophomore guard Akosa Maduegbunam (Hyde Park, Mass.) put in a lay-up, while junior forward Tyuan Williams (Newark, N.J.) added a two-handed flush on the fast break.
LIU Post wouild open up as much as a 14-point cushion (25-11) with 11:24 left, but Pace (0-1) chipped away, and closed the gap to 10 points, before mounting its rally. Down 40-30, the Setters went on a 16-0 run in a period of 2:05 to go in front 46-40 at the 2:50 mark. Sophomore forward Jaylen Mann (Youngstown, Ohio) sparked it with back-to-back threes. The visitors hit four trifectas in the streak.
Pace maintained its lead, and eventually headed into the locker room ahead 51-47. Torres led both teams in the opening stanza with 18 points, on 7-for-11 shooting from the floor, seven rebounds and five assists.
During the latter stage, the hosts quickly tied things up at 53-apiece, on a Torres reverse slam, and earned a one-point edge (54-53) just seconds later, via a free throw by the New Rochelle local. However, the Setters responded with a 9-2 spurt to go back in front, 62-56. Senior forward Jamaal James (Brooklyn, N.Y.) netted a pair of buckets in the effort. Mann contributed a lay-up, and a three-ball.
The Pioneers relentlessly continued to claw back though, keeping the deficit between one and five points, before they went ahead for good after the halfway mark. Locked at 69-all, Williams and Torres each drained a lay-up to give the green and gold a 73-69 advantage with 8:45 remaining.
Pace, despite the end result, still had a chance to win it in the final seconds. Down 84-80, Kevin Berardini (Lake Forest, Ill.) banked in a lay-up to narrow the hole to two. A subsequent missed free throw by junior guard Isiah Stokley (Queens, N.Y.) set up a potential game-tying or winning shot by the visitors on the final possession. Yet, Dillon Burns (Staten Island, N.Y.) forced a Berardini turnover, and the clock expired.
Burns and Maduegbunam collected 13 points apiece. Maduegbunam also pulled down six boards, while Burns dished out four assists. Stokley had 14 points in 23 minutes off the bench. Williams amassed 11 points and eight boards. For the contest, LIU Post shot 50.0 percent (31-of-62) from the floor, and 53.8 percent (7-of-13) from downtown.
The Setters were led by senior guard Denzel Primus-Devonish (Riverdale, Md.), who picked up a double-double (21 points, 11 assists). Mann recorded 19 points and 13 rebounds for a double-double as well.
Smiles and the Pioneers are back to the hardwood Sunday (Nov. 10), when they host American International in the finale of the 2013 LIU Post Tip-Off Tournament. Action is slated for a 2:30 p.m. start.