LONG ISLAND 71, HARVARD 56
The Long Island Blackbirds, for their second home game of the season, defeated Harvard 71-56. Super-Freshman Guy Ngarndi didn't play his best game offensively, with 2 points and 2-7 FT shooting, but he found other ways to impact the game with 12 rebounds, 4 assists and 3 steals. Jamion Nagata was once again in double-digits, with 11 points and 5 rebounds. Jermareo Linebaugh had his best scoring performance of the season, going for 21 points, 5 assists and 2 steals.
CC Reid and Stephon Roberts were not aggressive today, with a combined 7 points on 1-5 shooting from the field. Reid actually was in foul trouble the entire time, so Brannon Blackett played more minutes than usual and actually scored 13 points off the bench. For Harvard, Junior PF Scooter Chadwick was only a rebound away from a double-double, going for 12 points and 9 rebounds, leading his team in both categories. Their leading scorer on the season, Senior PG Percy Zavackas, was relatively quiet, with 10 points on 3-13 shooting. The Crimson (4-5) will next play against Western Carolina at home, while the Blackbirds of Long Island (5-3, 2-0 NEC) will travel to play Albany (3-7).
LONG ISLAND 71, ALBANY 61
The Blackbirds lengthened their win streak to 6 games, besting Albany in a tough road matchup, 71-61. Jamion Nagata continued a string of good games, with 16 points and 9 rebounds, leading the team in both. Guy Ngarndi (somewhat) returned to form in this matchup, going for 11 points and 5 rebounds, while Brannon Blackett had 12 off the bench.
The Blackbirds did, however, experience some kind of loss this game. Jermareo Linebaugh left the game early in the second half complaining about his foot, and he did not return. MRIs revealed that Linebaugh had a broken toe, and would be out for a little over 4 weeks. This is a crushing blow for the Blackbirds, but they should recover, as they only play 4 NEC games in these next 32 days. Coach Irving did not name a replacement starter yet, but here's what he had to say:
"Jermareo is one of our leaders, a captain and obviously a good ballplayer. Last week I said my guards had to step up, and now we need them to, more than ever. This winning streak has been nice after a rough start, but it's gonna be a lot harder to maintain it without our floor general."
Linebaugh has averaged 10.3 ppg/3.6 apg/1.8 rpg this season, being the Blackbirds' 3rd leading scorer and leading assister. Long Island (6-3) will next go back home to play Saint Peter's (2-6).
LONG ISLAND 65, SAINT PETER'S 58
A game after losing their floor general, Jermareo Linebaugh, for a month, the Blackbirds found themselves looking for the answer at the PG position. And oh, did they find it. Chawkoby Ingerson, in his first career start, had 15 points to lead all scorers, and also had a career-high 7 rebounds to lead Long Island over Saint Peter's in a 65-58 win at home. Brannon Blackett also saw some minutes at PG, and contributed 11 points of his own, hitting 3 threes.
"That is exactly what I wanted out of my backup guards! They were awesome, and more than made up for the loss of their teammate. If they could play like that every game, we put ourselves in a position to win every game, regardless of who's initiating our plays. Good energy from all of the guys at the 1 today; Chawk, Brannon, CC. We've got to keep this up."
The Blackbirds (7-3, 2-0 NEC) look to continue their win-streak when they play ULM (5-4) at home next week.
LONG ISLAND 73, ULM 66
It's 8 in a row for the Blackbirds! Long Island takes another win at home, beating ULM 73-66. Chawkoby Ingerson again played well in a starting role, with 11 points, but it was the starting forwards who were crucial in this game. Jamion Nagata had a season-high 21 points to lead all scorers, and Stephon Roberts had a double-double with 14 points and 11 rebounds. Both were forced to play C at some points in the game, with both Guy Ngarndi and Jaron Chalmers in foul trouble. Strangely enough, the 5 guard lineup (Ingerson, Blackett, Reid, Nagata, Roberts) worked well, with matchup problems all over the court for ULM.
ULM's super-scoring PG Jeffrey Hill (20 ppg) was held somewhat quiet by CC Reid, as he ended with 15 points on 5-15 shooting and had 3 turnovers. ULM, now 6-7, will begin their conference schedule with a road matchup @ UALR. Long Island (8-3, 2-0 NEC) will travel to play Holy Cross (6-3).
01-30-2017, 03:30 PM
