Men's Basketball Races by Saint Francis U, 88-74

Five players scored in double-figures and the Central Connecticut men's basketball team topped Saint Francis U, 88-74, in Northeast Conference action on Saturday at Detrick Gymnasium. The Blue Devils scored a season-high points and led for over 34 minutes in the contest.

Davonte Sweatman came off the bench to score a career-high 20 points to lead Central, while Andre Snoddy had his fourth straight double-double with 15 points and 11 rebounds.  Nigel Scantlebury and Kellen Amos each scored 17 points and Jay Rodgers scored 11 points. CCSU shot 29-of-59 (.492) from the field overall and 8-of-22 (.364) from three-point range. Central was 22-of-28 (.786) from the foul line.

Josh Cohen scored a game-high 22 points for SFU. The Red Flash shot 27-of-67 (.403) overall and 7-of-22 (.318) from the arc. Saint Francis was 13-of-15 (.867) from the foul line.

The Blue Devils begin a four-game road swing on Thursday with a game at St. Francis Brooklyn.

GAME INFORMATION
Score: CCSU 88, Saint Francis U 74
Records: CCSU (6-17, 4-5 NEC), SFU (8-13, 5-3 NEC)
Location: Detrick Gymnasium | New Britain, CT

KEY MOMENTS

• A three-pointer by Scantlebury would put CCSU ahead, 7-6, in the opening half and spark the Blue Devils in a period they would not trail in again. A jumper by Rodgers and a trifecta by Amos would put CCSU ahead by five minutes at the 14:00 mark.
• Central would build its largest lead of the opening half after consecutive jumpers by Sweatman and Rodgers made it 28-21 with 6:28 to go in the half. The Red Flash got within 43-41 with 0:12 to go in the period, before Sweatman was fouled on a shot just before the intermission. His foul shots would make it 45-41 at halftime.
• SFU scored the first five points after halftime and took a one-point lead on a three-pointer by Maxwell Land. CCSU would regain the lead momentarily before four straight foul shots by the Red Flash regained a 50-49 lead with 16:17 to go.
• Sweatman would hit a jumper to make it 54-52 for CCSU and the Blue Devils would not trail again. After an SFU cut it to 60-56 with 9:39 to play, the Central defense would hold the Red Flash without a field goal for almost five minutes. The Blue Devils would get four straight points from Tre Breland to push their lead to 73-64 with 5:07 to play.
• CCSU did not allow the Red Flash to get closer than 77-72 the rest of the way and the Blue Devils would go 8-for-8 from the foul line in the final 1:51 to seal the win.

QUOTABLE

"We knew this would be a free-flowing game," said head coach Patrick Sellers. "We've got a number of guys who can put the ball in the hoop. When we move the basketball and share it, we can put up a good number. The key is defending. We couldn't get into a back and forth game, we have to guard, that's how we make our bones. Second half we tightened up on defense."

NUMBER TO KNOW

53 – CCSU has gotten 53 points from its bench in the past two games, outscoring its opponents 53-21. Sweatman had a career-high 20 in 26 minutes off the bench Saturday.

NOTES

• Central ended a three-game slide in the series and split the season series with SFU. The Red Flash lead the all-time series, 27-24.
• Sweatman finished the game shooting 8-of-10 from the field, including 2-of-2 on three-pointers. He added five rebounds and four assists.
• Snoddy, the leading rebounder in league-play, has grabbed at least eight rebounds in eight straight games.
• Rodgers added six assists without a turnover in 25 minutes. He has gone four straight games without committing a turnover.
• SFU's Cohen entered the game shooting .624 from the field, but the Blue Devils limited him to 8-of-20 (.400) from the floor.
• Central had five scorers in double-figures for the first time since Feb. 5, 2022 vs. FDU.

UP NEXT

The Blue Devils begin a four-game road swing on Thursday with a game at St. Francis Brooklyn.