Yale dropped its second straight game, losing at No. 10 Florida Saturday.

Here is the AP report

GAINESVILLE, Fla. (AP)—Kenny Boynton’s 26 points led No. 10 Florida to a 90-70 victory over Yale on Saturday less than 40 hours after the Gators were upset at Rutgers.
Patrick Young added 19 points and Erik Murphy had 18 for Florida (11-3), while Bradley Beal had 11.
Greg Mangano led Yale (8-4) with 26 points and Austin Morgan added 10. Mangano’s game-high 15 rebounds helped the Bulldogs to a 37-32 rebound advantage.
Boynton, who matched his season-high in scoring, had 18 points by halftime as the Gators took a 46-35 lead.
Florida didn’t show any signs of a hangover from its 85-83 double-overtime loss at Rutgers on Thursday.

By Bill Cloutier
Assistant Sports Editor
bcloutier@nhregister.com
Averaging 25 points and 14 rebounds over the past three games Quinnipiac’s Ike Azotam has suddenly become a marked man. Azotam was double-teamed and harassed by a physical Boston University team all game long and managed a season-low four points and six rebounds.
But, even without getting production from their burgeoning star, the Bobcats still overcame a 13-point halftime deficit to defeat the Terriers 59-53 in a non-conference game at the TD Bank Sports Center Saturday afternoon. With the win, Quinnipiac has won six of its last seven games as it concludes the non-conference portion of its schedule
“I was really proud of our guys’ resolve in the second half and our ability to shake off a bad offensive night from basically every player and commit totally to defending and going to the offensive boards,” Quinnipiac coach Tom Moore said.
“That was as physical a team, boxing out and pushing us out of where we wanted to be, as any team we played all year. (B.U. coach Joe Jones) really got them to understand that Quinnipiac is a good rebounding team because we had 16 offensive rebounds and we’ve never had to work harder to get them than we did today.”
Freshman Ousmane Drame, starting because of a foot injury to Jamee Jackson, continues to progress at break-neck pace. Drame picked up the slack for Azotam to finished with 10 points, a game-high 14 rebounds and six blocks including two on one possession late in the game as the Terriers tried to erase its own six-point deficit.
Terrier guard Darryl Partin, who led all scorers with 19 points, went to the free throw line with 41 seconds to play with his team trailing 54-50. Partin missed a shot trying to complete a three-point play but got his own rebound but twice Drame blocked his shots to put the Bobcats in control.
“I really got on (Azotam) at halftime,” Moore said. “I challenged him quite a bit because I think he was caught by surprise by two factors, how big a target he’s going to have on him. You could tell how much of a focus B.U. put on stopping him and their commitment to boxing him out.
“Fortunately Ousmane picked up the slack. The 14 rebounds and six blocks in a game like this is really impressive.”
James Johnson led Quinnipiac with 16 points and freshman Zaid Hearst added 13 including a pair of critical 3-pointers as the Bobcats quickly cut into the Terriers’ 32-19 lead to start the second half. Quinnipiac went on an 11-2 run to start the second stanza and the game was up for grabs the rest of the way.
But Quinnipiac (8-5) never relaxed its defensive effort limiting B.U. to just eight points for the first 12 minutes after the break and the Bobcats took their first lead of the game, 43-42, with 5:59 to play on a pair of free throws by James Johnson. They never trailed again.
”Even when we went up by six I never felt we were in the control,” Moore said. “But I don’t think there’s been many halves that B.U. has shot 26 percent from the floor. Our will … was really good for our team’s confidence. The best thing is to get a win against a really good team while having to show a lot of resiliency.”
In the first half Quinnipiac got a taste of what would happen if the Bobcats couldn’t make a living on the offensive boards. Boston University, which has lost six straight games and was playing without starting point guard D.J. Irving due to a concussion controlled the boards, the tempo and the play on the way to a 32-19 halftime lead.
The Bobcats entered the game second in the nation in rebounding and first on the offensive boards averaging 17.6 a game but they had just five offensive rebounds in the first half and it only led to two points when guard Dave Johnson putback a miss by James Johnson.
But that hardly meant a momentum change was imminent as on the next trip down the court Dave Johnson fouled B.U. guard Matt Griffin (11 points) on a drive to the hoop. Johnson then pushed Griffin down and was called for personal and technical fouls giving him four fouls with four minutes left to play in the first half.
Quinnipiac has out-rebounded every team this season except for Lehigh and they lost to the Mountain Hawks 86-75 and after losing the battle on the backboards by one in the first half they finished with a 43-38 rebounding edge and Drame was the difference figuring in just about every Bobcat possession in the final minutes.
Said Drame: “Coach looked at us, especially the bigs (at halftime) and told us we had to pick it up. They were able to find me and I was able to go to the glass. This is very important for me especially for me as a freshman.
“The fact that Jamee Jackson isn’t there it’s hard. It’s hard at practice and it’s hard in the games but now I’m ready to show what I can do to get more playing time.”
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Men’s basketball gameday
Yale at Florida
When: Today, 2 p.m.
Where: Joel Coliseum, Winston-Salem, N.C.
Records: Yale (8-3); Florida (10-3)
TV: ESPNU
KEEP AN EYE ON
Scouting Yale: The Bulldogs rallied from 18 points down in the second half but dropped a 72-71 decision at Wake Forest on Thursday. They shot just 5-of-23 from 3-point range hindering their chances. Greg Mangano led the Bulldogs with 20 points and 12 rebounds and broke Chris Dudley’s all-time blocked shot mark at Yale with three more rejections giving the senior from Orange 174 for his career. The loss snapped a six-game winning streak.
Scouting Florida: The 10th-ranked Gators dropped a gut-wrenching 85-83 decision in double overtime at Rutgers on Thursday to snap a four-game winning streak. Florida features talented guards in Kenny Boynton and Erving Walker. Walker missed a chance to send Thursday's game into another overtime missing a shot at the buzzer. Erik Murphy is the son of Jay Murhpy who grew up in Meriden and played at Maloney before starring at Boston College and playing in the NBA
PROBABLE STARTERS
YALE
Player Ht. Yr. Pos. PPG
Greg Mangano 6-10 Sr. F 15.1
Reggie Willhite 6-4 Sr. F 13.8
Austin Morgan 5-11 Jr. G 13.6
Jeremiah Kreisberg 6-1 So. F 9.4
Michael Grace 6-0 Jr.. G 6.3
WAKE FOREST
Kenny Boynton 6-2 Jr. G 18.3
Erik Murphy 6-10 Jr. F 9.6
Mike Rosario 6-3 Jr. G 9.4
Bradley Beal 6-3 Fr. G 15.5
Erving Walker 5-8 Sr. G 14.2
OFF THE BENCH
Yale — Isaiah Salafia, 6-3, So., G, 14 ppg.; Brandon Sherrod, 6-6, Fr., F, 2.2; Florida — Patric Young, 6-9, So. C, 11.3; Scottie Wilbekin, 6-2, So., G, 2.6.
— Bill Cloutier

Men’s basketball gameday
BOSTON UNIVERSITY AT QUINNIPIAC
When: Saturday, noon.
Where: TD Bank Sports Center, Hamden
Records: Boston University (4-8); Quinnipiac (7-5)
Radio: WQUN-1220
TV: NESN, SNY
KEEP AN EYE ON
Discounted tickets: Tickets are just $5 for the New Year’s Eve matinee.
Scouting Quinnipiac: The Bobcats rank third in the nation in reboundng and Ike Azotam is a big reason. Azotam is eighth nationally averaging 11.2 rebounds a game and has scored 76 points in his last three outings. Quinnipiac has won five of six as it prepares to play its final non-conference game of the season.
Scouting Boston University: The Terriers have lost four straight but all have come against strong foes. Their last win was against rival Boston College. BU has an RPI of 181, while Quinnipiac is at 171 but the Terriers strength of schedule is much higher than that of the Bobcats. They’ve been out-rebounded by their opponents by over four boards a game which is an area that Quinnipiac will try to take advantage of but senior guard Darryl Partin, a 6-6 scoring machine, will cause plenty of problems defensively. Point guard D.J. Irving is questionable with a head injury.
PROBABLE STARTERS
BOSTON UNIVERSITY
Player Ht. Yr. Pos. PPG
Dom Morris 6-7 So. F 6.8
Travis Robinson 6-5 So. F 5.5
Patrick Hazel 6-6 Sr. F 7.7
Darryl Partin 6-6 Sr. G 20.8
Matt Griffin 5-10 Sr. G 5.6
QUINNIPIACIke Azotam 6-7 So. F 16.2
Dave Johnson 5-10 Jr. G 7.1
Zaid Hearst 6-4 Fr. G 5.6
James Johnson 6-0 Sr. G 17.3
Ousmane Drame 6-10 Fr. F 5.3

OFF THE BENCH
Boston Univ. — D.J. Irving, 6-0, So., G, 12.6 ppg.; Zach Chionuma, 6-5, Fr., G, 1.3; Malik Thomas, 6-7, Fr., F, 3.2. Quinnipiac — Nate Gause, 6-3, Fr., G, 5.0; Garvey Young, 6-5, Jr., G, 5.3.

Yale's Greg Mangano has three blocked shots against Wake Forest to set the school's record. He needed one block to tie Chris Dudley's school record of 172.

Here are the game details from the Associated Press:

WINSTON-SALEM, N.C. — C.J. Harris scored 23 points and Wake Forest held off pesky Yale’s second-half rally to win 72-71 on Thursday night.
Travis McKie added 14 points, Nikita Mescheriakov 13 and Tony Chennault 10 for the Demon Deacons (9-4), who never trailed in the game but saw the Bulldogs make things interesting in the final minutes.
Wake Forest led by as many as 19 points midway through the final half, only to see Yale pull within 68-66 on Austin Morgan’s 3-pointer with 1:02 remaining.
But Chennault hit a layup 12 seconds later, followed by Harris’ two free throws, to give the Demon Deacons some breathing room.
Greg Mangano had 20 points and 12 rebounds and Morgan added 15 points for Yale, including a 3-pointer with 0.2 seconds left. Michael Grace scored 12 and Reggie Willhite 10 for the Bulldogs (8-3), who saw their six-game winning streak snapped.
Leading by six points at the break, Wake Forest opened the second half with a 14-2 run, capped by two Mescheriakov free throws, to go up 48-30 with 15:25 left.
The Demon Deacons would push their lead to 19 points a few minutes later, with Harris’ 3-pointer with 11:31 remaining giving Wake Forest a 56-37 margin.
However, Yale responded with an 18-5 run, with two Morgan free throws cutting the Demon Deacons’ lead to 63-58 with 2:19 left. The Bulldogs pulled within five points twice more before Morgan’s 3 pulled them within striking distance.
The same thing happened in the first half — Wake Forest raced out to a big lead, only to see Yale fight back.
Back-to-back 3-pointers by McKie and Harris gave the Demon Deacons a 25-14 lead — their biggest of the first half — with 6:47 remaining.
However, the Bulldogs cut Wake Forest’s lead to four points twice in the final two minutes, the last at 32-28 on Willhite’s layup with 1:03 left. But Chennault hit a jumper with 1 second remaining to put the Demon Deacons

Former UConn star and Shelton native Dan Orlovsky's wife gave birth to triplets acoording to several online sources.

Orlovsky, who led the Indianapolis Colts to their first win last week, a dramatic come-from-behind victory over the Houston Texans, is the father of three sons.
His wife Tiffany delivered the triplets today.
The couple married in July, 2009

Another win and another fantastic game from rising star Ike Azotam as Quinnipiac edged Colgate 80-70.
Azotam, a double-double machine had 20 points and 14 rebounds in the Bobcats win.

Here are the details from the Quinnipiac website:

HAMILTON, N.Y. - Four members of the Quinnipiac University men's basketball team registered double-figures in the scoring column on Wednesday evening, as the Bobcats handed Colgate University an 80-70 defeat at Cotterell Court in Hamilton, N.Y. The Bobcats shot 57 percent from the floor in the second half and connected on 28-of-31 from the free-throw line, two statistics that proved to be difference-makers in the final result.

With the win, Quinnipiac improved to 7-5 on the season, and have completed their regular-season non-conference road schedule. The Raiders suffered their second consecutive loss, dropping to 5-7 on the campaign.

Ike Azotam (Boston, Mass.) recorded game-highs in points (20) and rebounds (14) for his 10th career double-double, and number eight on the year. James Johnson (Queens, N.Y.) poured in 18 points on 4-of-9 shooting, including 9-of-10 from the free-throw line. He scored 11 in the second half and dished out a game-high six assists. Zaid Hearst (Bethesda, Md.) posted a new career-high with 16 points, as the freshman guard went 4-of-7 from the floor and 7-of-8 from the stripe. Dave Johnson (Jackson, N.J.) added 10 points and four rebounds.

The majority of the first half featured a back-and-forth battle, where neither team could gain a significant advantage. However, after the fourth and final media timeout, the Bobcats rallied off a 7-0 run to close the half en route to a 31-24 lead at the break. Dave Johnson and Nate Gause (Poughkeepsie, N.Y.) accounted for the seven points on offense.

Azotam nearly collected his double-double in the first half, posting 10 points and nine boards. The backcourt duo of Dave Johnson and James Johnson combined for 15 points as well.

Upon resuming play after the intermission, Quinnipiac picked up right where it left off in the first half. Garvey Young (Washington, D.C.) knocked down a three-point field goal from the wing to cap off a 26-18 run at the 10:19 mark. The bucket forced first-year head coach Matt Langel into a timeout, as QU had created its largest lead of the game (15 points).

The Raiders wouldn't go away and began to chip away at the deficit behind stellar long-range shooting. Colgate reduced its deficit to just five points at two different points, but terrific shooting from the free-throw line and key baskets disallowed a complete comeback. The Bobcats made their last six shots from the line down the stretch, with Azotam putting the game away after converting on a three-point play in the waning seconds.

QU outshot Colgate 42 percent to 40 percent from the field, 90 percent (28-31) to 82 percent (14-17) from the free-throw line and controlled the glass with a plus-20 rebounding margin (45-25). 18 of the 45 rebounds came on the offensive end, which lead to 19 second-chance points.

Forward Ousmane Drame, in his second-career start, posted six points and seven rebounds. Young and Gause combined for 10 points off the bench.

Mike Venezia had 15 points to lead all Raiders, who head to New Hampshire on Saturday. Sterling Melville finished with 14 and Mitch Rolls added 10.

QU returns to action on Saturday, December 31 when the team plays host to Boston University at the TD Bank Sports Center. Tip-off is set for noon with a live broadcast featured on NESN and SNY. For all information pertaining to the men's basketball program, please visit www.quinnipiacbobcats.com.

Men’s basketball gameday
YALE AT WAKE FOREST
When: Today, 7 p.m.
Where: Joel Coliseum, Winston-Salem, N.C.
Records: Yale (8-2); Wake Forest (8-4)
Video: theacc.com
KEEP AN EYE ON
Scouting Yale: The Bulldogs hope that rust is not a factor. They’ve won six straight but have played just once sice Dec. 7. The winning streak is the longest in a decade and Yale has shown plentyof reliency trailing three of the six victories at the half. Yale leads the Ivy League in scoring at 74.1 ppg. Greg Mangano needs one block to tie Chris Dudley’s all-time mark at Yale.
Scouting Wake Forest: The last time Yale played Wake Forest the Demon Deacons featured Chris Paul and were ranked No. 1 in the nation. This time Wake Forest has won three of its last four games and is ranked 100th in the RPI. Yale is 115th in the RPI. Both teams have lost at Seton Hall this season. Wake Forest has been outrebounded by five boards a game.
PROBABLE STARTERS
YALE
Player Ht. Yr. Pos. PPG
Greg Mangano 6-10 Sr. F 17.0
Reggie Willhite 6-4 Sr. F 12.9
Austin Morgan 5-11 Jr. G 14.6
Jeremiah Kreisberg 6-1 So. F 9.5
Michael Grace 6-0 Jr. G 6.1
WAKE FOREST
C.J. Harris 6-3 Jr. G 18.3
Travis McKie 6-7 So. F 17.7
Tony Chennault 6-2 So. G 11.5
N. Mescheriakov 6-8 Sr. F 6.8
Carson Desrosiers 7-0 So. C 5.9

OFF THE BENCH
Yale — Isaiah Salafia, 6-3, So., G, 2.0 ppg.; Brandon Sherrod, 6-6, Fr., F, 3.1; Wake Forest — Chase Fischer, 6-3, Fr., G, 7.6; Ty Walker, 7-0, Sr., C, 4.7.
— Bill Cloutier

Men’s basketball gameday
Quinnipiac at Colgate
When: Today, 7 p.m.
Where: Cotterell Court, Hamilton, N.Y.
Records: Quinnipiac (6-5); Colgate (5-6)
Radio: WQUN-1220
Video: gocolgateraiders.com
KEEP AN EYE ON
Scouting Quinnipiac: Ike Azotam has scored career highs in his last two games and the brst couldn’t have come at a better time. With Jamee Jackson expected to miss up to five weeks with torn ligaments in his left foot Azotam has become an offensive force. Freshman Ousmane Drame was also terrific last game, a win over Niagara, registering his first career double-double. Drame is averaging 5.9 rebounds a game in just over 15 minutes of action.
Scouting Colgate: The Red Raiders are 4-0 at home on the season and have a balanced offense with five players averaging at least nine points a game. They shoot 40 percent from 3-point range and are 2-0 on the season against Northeast Conference teams. They’ve played at Wisconsin and at Syracuse this season but both were blowouts.
PROBABLE STARTERS
COLGATE
Player Ht. Yr. Pos. PPG
Nick Pascale 6-10 Sr. C 6.3
Yaw Gyawu 6-5 Sr. F 9.0
Pat Moore 6-5 So. G 11.1
Mike Venezia 6-1 Sr. G 9.2
Mitch Rolls 6-0 Jr. G 10.0
QUINNIPIAC
Ousmane Drame 6-10 Fr. F 5.3
Dave Johnson 5-10 Jr. G 6.8
Ike Azotam 6-7 So. F 15.9
Zaid Hearst 6-4 Fr. G 4.6
James Johnson 6-0 Sr. G 17.2
OFF THE BENCH
Quinnipiac — Nate Gause, 6-3, Fr., G, 5.0 ppg.; Garvey Young, 6-5, Jr., G, 5.3. Colgate: Sterling Melville, 6-4, Sr., F, 9.5; Brandon James, 6-6, Jr., F, 5.3

HAMDEN – Jamee Jackson, a starting forward on the Quinnipiac men’s basketball, will be sidelined for three to five weeks after injuring his foot on Thursday.
According to Quinnipiac coach Tom Moore, Jackson suffered torn ligaments in his foot and scar tissue. X-rays revealed no fracture and no surgery will be necessary but Jackson will be in a walking boot for three weeks.
Jackson, third on the team in scoring (9.8 ppg) and second in rebounds (5.4 rpg.), sat out Thursday night’s game against Niagara, an 85-81 Bobcat victory, after stepping on a ball while following through on a dunk during afternoon practice.
Jackson, a junior from Newark, N.J., had been playing his best basketball since arriving at the school recently. He scored a career-high 21 points in a win against Bryant while grabbing nine rebounds in the game. Last week he scored 20 points in a win at Vermont.
Follow Bill on Twitter @BillCloutier. To receive breaking news first, simply text the word nhsports to 22700. *Msg & Data Rates May Apply. Text HELP for help. Text STOP to cancel.

By Bill Cloutier
Assistant Sports Editor
bcloutier@nhregister.com
HAMDEN – Jamee Jackson, a starting forward on the Quinnipiac men’s basketball suffered what is suspected to be broken left foot in Thursday’s shoot-around and will be sidelined for an indefinite time period.
Jackson, third on the team in scoring (9.8 ppg) and second in rebounds (5.4 rpg.), sat out Thursday night’s game against Niagara in a walking boot. He is scheduled for further tests on Friday.
Jackson, a junior from Newark, N.J., had been playing his best basketball since arriving at the school recently. He scored a career-high 21 points in a win against Bryant while grabbing nine rebounds in the game. Last week he scored 20 points in a win at Vermont.
While there was no immediate time on when Jackson could return he could miss between four and six weeks which would translate into around nine games, six of which would be Northeast Conference games.
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Men’s basketball gameday
Niagara at Quinnipiac
When: Today, 7 p.m.
Where: TD Bank Sports Center, Hamden
Records: Niagara (4-7); Quinnipiac (5-5)
Radio: WQUN-1220 AM
Discounted tickets: Holiday tickets are just $5 for adults and children under the age of 12 are free for tonight’s game.
Scouting Niagara: The Purple Eagles recently snapped a three-game skid at the University of Hartford, but followed with a 13-point loss to Drexel last Tuesday. Since then, the Purple Eagles have enjoyed some time off, leaving a nine-day break from competition. The squad has been led by Juan'ya Green; a freshman guard out of Philadelphia, Pa. Green is off to a tremendous start averaging 19.9 points, 3.3 rebounds and 3.2 assists per game. He is joined by two others who are consistently scoring in double-figures. Fellow guards Antoine Mason and Marvin Jordan are bringing in 14 and 11.6 points, respectively, per game. Mason is the son of former Knick, Anthony Mason.
Scouting Quinnipiac: The Bobcats had a bad stretch to start the second half in a loss against UMass and never recovered to snap their three-game winning streak. Quinnipiac defeated Niagara 88-63 last season as James Johnson scored 23 points on seven 3-pointers. Quinnipiac has once again established itself as a national power on the boards. The Bobcats lead the nation in rebounds (44.4) and offensive rebounds per game (17.4), and are sixth in rebounding margin (10.9). This marks the third consecutive season that QU has cracked the top-10 in rebounding; including a second place finish (42.3 per game) in 2010-11 behind only North Carolina.

I feel it is a shocking news that Yale football coach Tom Williams has resigned.
If it is because of his statement on the Rhodes Scholarship I don't feel that there was much harm in it.
If it was because of his losses to Harvard that's even worse.
Here's wishing that Williams finds success in his next venture.
Here is the release on Williams' resignation from the Yale website.

New Haven, Conn.—Yale University today accepted the resignation of head football coach Tom Williams. Williams' resignation is effective December 31, said Director of Athletics Tom Beckett.

"I wish to clear the record," Williams said in offering his resignation. "On the Rhodes Scholarship issue, I was encouraged to apply by the Stanford Fellowship office, which identified me 'as the kind of student who demonstrates the intellect, energy and commitment that the Rhodes selection committees seek in their applicants.' I considered the opportunity, sought advice and was encouraged to apply by faculty members and my coach Bill Walsh, but I did not apply."

"During the spring of my senior year, I was given an opportunity to attend a try-out camp with the San Francisco 49ers, and I participated in that three-day event. I did not sign a free agent contract with the 49ers or participate in their summer training camp for signed players."

"I am extremely proud of my academic, athletic and coaching career. If there was confusion created, I take full responsibility. The timing of this inquiry has been difficult for everyone. At this point I believe it is in the best interest of my student-athletes and Yale University that I step down."

In accepting Williams' resignation, Beckett said, "Coach Williams has been a dedicated teacher and coach at Yale, and his students have benefited greatly from his leadership and passion for the game of football."

Beckett said the University would immediately begin a search for Williams' successor.
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Rashaad Slowley Wins Joe Zabilski Award From Gridiron Club of Greater Boston

NEW HAVEN, Conn. – Southern Connecticut State University senior running back Rashaad Slowley (Mount Vernon, N.Y.) has been selected as the winner of the Joe Zabilski Award by the Gridiron Club of Greater Boston. The accolade is awarded annually to New England’s top players in the Division II and Division III ranks. Slowley will be honored at a dinner on Thursday, January 12 at the Westin Hotel in Waltham, Mass.
Slowley, a Harlon Hill Award finalist, given annually to the Division II College Football Player of the Year and the 2011 Northeast-10 Conference Most Valuable Player, currently ranks No. 3 in all of NCAA college football at all levels in scoring (29 touchdowns and 174 total points). He is also currently No. 5 among student-athletes at all levels in rushing yards/game (158.4) and ranks second in Division II in scoring, third in yards/game and sixth in all-purpose yards/game (181.7).
Also a First-Team All-Region pick by Daktronics, Slowley set a new school single-season record for touchdowns with 29, and a new SCSU single-game record with six touchdowns in a win over St. Anselm on Sept. 17.
He finished the year with 274 carries for 1,584 yards and 27 rushing touchdowns and also hauled in 21 catches for 233 yards and two receiving touchdowns. He reached the 100 yard mark in all nine Division II games this year and rushed for more than 200 yards on three occasions. Slowley led the Northeast-10 Conference in rushing yards, touchdowns and in all-purpose yards this year.
In all, Slowley finished his career ranked No. 2 all-time at SCSU in rushing yards (3,460), touchdowns (45) and points (272).

YALE AT QUINNIPIAC
When: Today, 4 p.m.
Where: TD Bank Sports Center, Hamden
Records: Yale 5-4; Quinnipiac 6-3
TV: NESN
KEEP AN EYE ON
Scouting Yale: Megan Vasquez leads the Bulldogs scoring 16.2 ppg. Yale has already beaten two Northeast Conference teams on the season and are coming off a 72-41 blowout of St. Francis (N.Y.) on Sunday. Freshman Sarah Halejian scored a career-high 14 points and the Bulldogs are currently ranked 118th in the RPI.
Scouting Quinnipiac: The Bobcats lead the all-time series 8-7 but Yale won last year 74-68. Quinnipiac is coming off an overtime win at Rhode Island. Felicia Barron had 22 points in the game and Brittney McQuain chipped in with 13 points and eight rebounds. The Bobcats have won five of their last six games and are 84th in the RPI.
Miscellaneous: Tickets are available for $2 and children are free for the contest which will be televised on NESN.

Tickets for the annual Quinnipiac-Yale women's basketball can be pruchsed for just $2 today. The tip-off is scheduled for 4 p.m at the TD Bank Sports Center and this should be a good one. Yale is coming off a dominant 72-41 win over NEC ream St. Francis, N.Y.
Freshman guard Sarah Halejian scored 14 points, her highest output in her short Yale career, to help lead Yale to the win. She also matched a season-high with three rebounds and added two steals in the victory. Thanks to that performance, Halejian was named the Ivy League Co-Player of the Week Monday afternoon.

"Sarah is a gifted offensive player and is becoming a very strong defender as well," said Chris Gobrecht, the Joel E. Smilow, Class of 1954, Head Coach of Women's Basketball. "It is great to be able to get such significant contributions from our freshmen."

In her fourth start of the season, Halejian scored eight of her 14 points in the second half, helping the Bulldogs outscore the Terriers 44-20 in the second half. Halejian scored her 14 points on 6-of-10 shooting with one 3-pointer and a 1-for-1 showing at the free-throw line. She was 3-for-4 from the floor in the second half, including a perfect 1-for-1 from 3-point range and 1-for-1 from the line.

Today's game can be seen on cable sports network NESN.

I'm back after a week's vacation.
Check out this space for updates on the area's collegiate sports scene daily.

On Sunday Yale's men's basketball won its sixth straight game, a wild affiar against URI.
The details come from the Yale Website.

Bulldogs Extend Winning Streak To Six With Dramatic Victory

KINGSTON, R.I. – Yale extended its winning streak to six straight games, but it sure didn't come easy. The Bulldogs needed a five-point play with 18 seconds left to help knock off Rhode Island 68-65 before a stunned crowd of 3,355 at the Thomas Ryan Center.

With Yale down by two, 63-61, Austin Morgan hit a three-pointer from just right of the top of the key with 18 seconds left. URI's Rayvon Harris was hit with a foul trying to fight through a screen on the play. Morgan's basket counted, and Jeremiah Kreisberg added a pair of free throws to make it 66-63.

"Our first option was to go to Greg [Mangano]down low to try and tie it. Austin was on the same side, and he was the second option," said James Jones, The Joel E. Smilow, Class of 1954 Head Coach of Men's Basketball. "Austin did a great job knocking down the shot, and Jeremiah set a great screen."

Still, the Runnin' Rams had a chance to tie in the final seconds. Mike Powell's driving layup pulled URI within one, 66-65, with nine seconds left. After a timeout, Yale inbounded the ball to Michael Grace, who was quickly fouled. He made both free throws with seven seconds remaining.

Rhode Island's Jonathan Holton missed a contested three-pointer from the wing as time expired.

Morgan finished with 19 points to pace the Bulldogs. All five of his field goals were three-pointers, and he was 4-of-4 from the foul line. Kreisberg and Mangano each added 15 points, and Grace scored seven.

At 8-2 overall, Yale is off to its best start since the 1991-92 team won 10 of its first 12 games. The six-game winning streak is the longest for the Bulldogs since 2001-02.

Three times during the winning streak, Yale has trailed at the half, and that was the case again against the Rams.

Perhaps showing the effects of a 10-day layoff for exams, the Bulldogs started slowly. URI (1-10) led by 13, 32-19, with three minutes left in the first half. The Bulldogs, though, closed the half with an 11-4 run to pull within 36-30 at the intermission.

The momentum carried over into the second half. Just seven minutes in, Yale had the lead and it grew to 10, 61-51, on a Mangano layup with 6:13 left.

The Bulldogs, though, didn't score again until Morgan's dramatic three-pointer.

"It feels good to get this win," Jones said. "We squandered a lead, but were able to come back. I think we showed a lot of resiliency."

Yale made nine three-pointers in the game and was 7-of-13 from beyond the arc in the second half.

"They switched to a zone, and we knocked down some shots," Jones said. "We did a poor job handling their pressure in the first half."

Isaiah Salafia hit two big three-pointers in the second half to account for his six points.

Nikola Malesevic led Rhode Island with 25 points.

NOTES: Yale was 19-of-22 from the foul line in the game… During the six-game winning streak, the Bulldogs have outscored their opponents 127-75 at the free throw line… Mangano had two blocked shots, giving him 171 for his career, one behind Chris Dudley's school record… Reggie Willhite had four assists in the game, including one on Morgan's dramatic three-pointer… The players will now head home for the holiday before getting back together in North Carolina on Dec. 27. The Bulldogs play at Wake Forest on Dec. 29 before heading to Gainesville, Fla., for a New Year's Eve matchup with Florida.

Here is an AP story on the aftermath of the Cincy-Xavier brawl on Saturday.

By Al Behrman, AP

Cincinnati forward Yancy Gates fought off tears when he apologized for his role in a fight at the end of the Bearcats' game against Xavier.

"Never to wear the jersey again," he said Monday during an unscripted news conference at which the school's four suspended players apologized for their roles in the fight. Referees ended the game, won by host Xavier 76-53, after the fight broke out with 9.4 seconds left.

Gates, suspended for six games, and other players now have to worry about the possibility of criminal charges. Earlier Monday, Hamilton County Prosecutor Joseph T. Deters said his office will review the fight to determine if charges are appropriate for Cincinnati and Xavier players. Xavier also suspended four players.

"I was the highlighted guy," Gates said of the video that shows him landing a punch to the face of Xavier's Kenny Frease. "I was the bigger guy out there."

Gates, listed at 6-9, 260 pounds, grew emotional and bowed his head after saying people have called him a thug and gangster. "I'm just not that type of person," he said.

Another consequence of the fight could be the end of a series between the teams that has been in place every season since 1946.

No decision has been made, Cincinnati athletics director Whit Babcock said.

"This isn't rocket science," Cincinnati coach Mick Cronin said. "If we're not going to take the floor against each other in an appropriate manner, there's no point in taking the floor."

Sunday, Xavier athletics director Mike Bobinski sounded hopeful the series could continue but said the hostility has to end. He and Babcock have discussed getting the teams together for community projects after the season.

Along with Gates, Cincinnati suspended freshman Octavius Ellis and junior Cheikh Mbodj for six games each and freshman Ge'Lawn Guyn for one. Gates' and Mbodj's suspensions included a mandatory one-game suspension imposed by the NCAA for fighting.

Xavier suspended star guard Tu Holloway for one game, freshman Dezmine Wells and sophomore Landen Amos for four games and Mark Lyons for three, including one mandated by the NCAA for fighting. Xavier coach Chris Mack, Bobinski and Holloway issued apologies Sunday.

Babcock said he found no road map or precedent in handing out punishment: "No amount of games can take those punches back."

Only one technical foul was called, against Xavier's team. Cronin said officials should have called more against both teams. "I don't recall a game where there were not technical fouls called on players by officials that had control of the game early on. That being said, it doesn't absolve us from anything that happened."

Cronin said the referees were put in a bad situation, unfamiliar with the extent of the bitterness between the programs. He seemed to blame the Atlantic 10 Conference for assigning the crew of Michael Roberts, Jeff Anderson and Tony Crisp.

"The crew assigned for the Xavier-Cincinnati game work for both the Atlantic 10 Conference and the Big East Conference and are a 'blended crew' as required by the game contract," the A-10 said in a statement. "As is standard, the A-10 communicated with the Big East coordinator of officials on the assignment."

Quinnipiac beginning to get on a roll. This is from the QU web site

BURLINGTON, Vt. - Junior Jamee Jackson (Newark, N.J.) finished with 20 points on Sunday afternoon, as the Quinnipiac University men's basketball team handed the University of Vermont a home loss, 62-58, at Patrick Gymnasium in Burlington. With the win, the Bobcats climbed back over the .500 mark at 5-4, while the hosting Catamounts fell to 4-6 on the season.

With the Bobcats ahead by one with 2:33 showing on the clock, James Johnson (Queens, N.Y.) silenced the crowd with a deep three-point field goal to give the Bobcats a 57-53 lead. After a Catamount free-throw from Brian Voelkel, senior Garvey Young (Washington, D.C.), who returned to Vermont for the first time since transferring after his sophomore year, then pushed the lead to five with with a pull-up jumper on the left block with 42 seconds left. UVM ran out of time and couldn't overcome the deficit, suffering its fourth loss in a row.

Jackson was dominant in all facets of the game, adding seven rebounds and two steals to his stat line. He finished 8-of-15 from the floor, 4-of-5 from the charity stripe and was stellar behind the ball as well. James Johnson recorded 13 points, including two tallies from behind the arc. Ike Azotam (Boston, Mass.) and Young each finished with eight points and combined for 12 rebounds. Dave Johnson (Jackson, N.J.) chimed in with six points and Zaid Hearst (Bethesda, Md.) added four.

The game never saw a lead larger than six points, which the Catamounts earned in the first half. However, the Bobcats rallied off an 11-6 run in the final six minutes of the opening stanza to trail by just one at the break.

Contrary to the first half where the two teams combined for a total of 10 fouls, the second half featured a physical battle underneath. In the latter frame, 22 fouls were called, 13 against the visiting Bobcats. Azotam was sent to the bench after his fourth foul with nine minutes left in regulation.

However, poor free-throw shooting plagued the Catamounts down the stretch, as the team connected on just 8-17 in the second half. The missed freebees allowed the Bobcats to regain the lead with 4:19 left in the game, an advantage they would not relinquish.

QU used a plus-nine edge on the boards for the game, collecting 42 of them including 16 on the offensive end. The Bobcats shot 39.7 percent from the floor and went 10-of-15 from the free-throw line. The Catamounts shot 46 percent from the field, but just 1-of-13 from behind the arc.

Four players on Vermont registered double-figures on the afternoon. Brian Voelkel led all Catamounts with 12, Josh Elbaum added 11 and Luke Apfeld and Brendan Bald finished with 10.

Quinnipiac will now take some time away from the court to focus on finals before returning for its next contest. The Bobcats don't return to the hardword until Saturday, December 11 with a non-conference affair at UMass. Tip-off is set for 7 p.m. in Amherst, Mass. NESN will broadcast the game live.

@BillCloutier

NEW HAVEN — University of New Haven guard Jeffery Adkins Jr. is playing this season with a bit of a chip on his shoulder. Being a top member of a team picked 16th in a 16-team conference can do that to you.

Adkins and the Chargers continued to play the Rodney Dangerfield role on Saturday beating rival Southern Connecticut State 61-53 in front of 812 fans at the Moore Fieldhouse.

Eric Anderson led New Haven (7-2 overall, 5-2 Northeast-10) with 14 points and Justin Exum had 12 points and 10 rebounds. Jeremy Williams had 10 points and Sean Harris had nine points and nine rebounds in a balanced Charger effort. Southern was led by Tylon Smith who was 6 for 7 from the floor finishing with 13 points.

“We feel like we can play with anybody in this conference and they don’t give us any respect,” Adkins said. “We wanted to come out and play good defense like we’ve been playing.”

New Haven coach Ted Hotaling isn’t relying on his team’s lack of respect for motivation. He’d prefer to bank on solid defense and rebounding, like the kind they got on Saturday. Facing Southern (5-4, 4-3) and its big three of Greg and Dominique Langston and Trevon Hamlet, the Chargers limited the Owls to 31 percent shooting from the field.

The Owl’s star trio, entering the game averaging a combined 48 points, shot 11 for 45 from the floor and finished with 30 points.

“Coach (Hotaling) told us they’ve got some big scorers but (Ade Barek) locked up Hamlet and we played the Langstons as good as we could.”

Said Hotaling: “We’re a very good defensive team right now. We did what we’ve been doing (defensively), holding teams under 40 percent shooting and under 30 percent from 3-point range and out-rebounding them.

“I wish we could have made a few more shots, but Barek shut down Hamlet who’s one of the best players in the league and he’s done that all year for us.” Continued...

Southern coach Mike Donnelly said his team didn’t play very well.

“I give all the credit to New Haven,” Donnelly said. “They did a great job. But for some reason we were a step slow and that’s my fault.

“This has to motivate us to go catch New Haven. The did a great job on our three guys and they made plays and we didn’t.”

After erasing a 20-13 deficit midway through the first half, the Chargers rarely trailed again. New Haven led 36-30 at the half and opened up a 10-point lead in the early stages of the second half. When Southern cut the margin to 48-46 the Chargers outworked Southern a crucial possession.

New Haven missed three straight shots on the trip but got every offensive board and kicked the ball out to Sean Harris for a wide-open 3-pointer to give the Chargers a 51-46 lead.

“We talk about that all the time and it really hasn’t happened, but it showed up at a good time,” Hotaling said.

But the game was still in doubt in the final minute when Quinnipiac transfer Dominique Langston (10 points on 3 for 15 shooting) finally connected on a long, fadeaway 3-pointer with 58 seconds remaining. Following a Charger turnover, Dominique took the ball the length of the floor but missed an open layup and New Haven capitalized immediately, scoring the final six points to put the game away.

“Dominique’s been struggling shooting,” Donnelly said. “He’s been inconsistent. He can do a lot of things, and he has to understand with him it doesn’t all come down to shooting. He has to do everything else he’s capable of doing.”

The Chargers, which went 8-18 last season, have won four straight.

“Anytime you can beat your rival its’ big,” Hotaling said. “If I said it wasn’t I’d be lying. It’s great to beat them and it’s a league game, too.”

By Bill Cloutier
Assistant Sports Editor
bcloutier@nhregister.com
NEW HAVEN – The schedule has not been kind to the Yale women’s basketball team. After playing six straight games on the road including a pair of contests against teams ranked in the Top 25, the Bulldogs finally returned home for a game against Boston University.
But the trip to New Haven also marked a homecoming of sorts for BU’s Chantell Alford and the former Wilbur Cross standout made several key plays in the final minutes to help the Terriers preserve a 59-54 win in a non-league game at the Lee Amphitheater Wednesday night.
Alford finished with eight points including a huge field goal with 42 seconds to play and later sealed the game with two free throws with 4 seconds left as Boston University staved off a furious Bulldog rally.
“I thought if we didn’t run the ball over we would have passed them,” Yale coach Chris Gobrecht said. “But we’ve got kids that just aren’t playing well right now and they have to play better.
“They have to do some soul-searching. The younger kids played OK but some of the older ones didn’t and they have to. It took us a while to get our land legs under us because we’ve been on the road for so long.”
The Bulldogs shot just 4 of 22 in the first half and trailed 30-14 at the break. But Megan Vazquez stepped up in the second half scoring 20 of her game-high 22 points in the second half as Yale cut the deficit to 56-54 with 11 seconds to play.
After BU hit one free throw Vazquez had a chance to tie the game with a long 3-pointer but it bounded off the rim and Alford corralled the rebounds and buried two free throws to seal it.
Alford, who entered the game leading the Terriers in scoring at 13.9 ppg., was limited to two points until the game’s final minutes. She suffered a leg injury early in the second half and did not return to the game until there was eight minutes left.
“The knee just locked up on me a bit but it’s fine now,” Alford said after the game. “We made some plays at crunch time and held on.”
Alford said the victory was even sweeter because it came in front of several of her family members and friends.
“It’s always nice to come back and play in New Haven,” she said. “Getting the win at Yale is just special.”
It was just the second game at home for Yale, which takes an 11-day break for final exams carrying a 4-4 mark.
“There’s no excuses,” Gobrecht said. “If we played them again I feel we should be all right but we didn’t play well tonight and when they got the lead, they’ve got a good point guard (Mo Moran) who controlled the tempo. “
Yale’s Janna Graf not only failed to score in the game but didn’t get a shot off. Graf, who has averaged double-figures since she arrived at the school, had three of the Bulldogs’ 22 turnovers.
“It wasn’t her type of game because we were attacking,” Gobrecht said. “She’s more of a half court player so she wasn’t in there.”
Yale got 12 points from Hayden Latham who had missed the previous week of practice and Gobrecht said was far from sharp.
“Even when we were out-playing them in the second half we sabotaged ourselves with foolish turnovers and foolish fouls.
Caroline Stewart led BU (3-4) with 14 points and 14 rebounds and Moran had 13 points.
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By Bill Cloutier
Assistant Sports Editor
bcloutier@nhregister.com
NEW HAVEN – Yale center Greg Mangano hopes his game will one day take him to the NBA. He has the complete for a big man, possessing good hands, a gentle touch around the basket and even a flair for the dramatic.
With the score tied with less than seven minutes to play Mangano buried a wild 3-pointer at the end of the shot clock to spark a 7-0 run and the Bulldogs went on to their fifth straight victory, a 76-59 decision over Bryant in a non-league at the Lee Amphitheater Wednesday night.
“When Greg hit the 3-pointer it kind of got us going,” Yale coach James Jones said. “It was one of those prayers. He had three guys hanging on him and he just threw it at the rim. We had so many other good looks that didn’t go in so that kind of got us going.
“We were not mentally in it 100 percent until crunch time but we picked ourselves up then. I don’t know if it was because we played three games in five days.”
Mangano disagreed that his Jones that his shot was a divine intervention but both were in agreement that the senior from Orange could have played better despite his 21-point, nine-rebound outburst.
“Greg goes for 21-and-nine and I don’t think he played well at all,” Jones said. “That’s my expectation of this young man. He can be a great, great player for us.”
Mangano also had two blocked shots moving him closer to Chris Dudley for the school’s all-time record in that department. He needs just three to break the record.
“It’s an honor to be compared with Chris,” Mangano said. “He had a great career here and a great career in the NBA. Protecting the basket is a big part of our defense and that falls on my shoulders. Blocking shots and rebounding is big. I try to keep the ball inbounds when I block it, too.”
With five straight wins Yale is off to a 7-2 start, the best Jones’ 14-year tenure with the team.
“I’m not going to say this is the best team I’ve had,” he said. “I had a team that won a championship. This team has not won one yet. I like this team and we can be very good. We’re a talented team but we still have a ways to go.”
Both Mangano and Jones and feel this team is loaded with ability bringing with it a confidence in a series of tight games all of which have gone the Bulldogs’ way.
“We have great team chemistry,” Mangano said. “We proved that against Vermont and the second half of the Sacred Heart game (both recent wins). On any given night anyone can have 20 points. When we move the ball and share the ball it’s pretty obvious.
“The past couple of games I was definitely confident in our guys and myself that we would pull it out.”
Wednesday’s game was a see-saw affair until Mangano’s basket gave Yale the lead for good. His short jumper a couple of minutes later gave the Bulldogs a 67-57 lead with 2:17 to play. Bryant never got closer than double-digits again.
Austin Morgan added 10 points and Yale also got great help from its bench which Jones knows will be crucial in the back-to-back nights of Ivy League play. The reserves scored 24 points led by freshman Brandon Sherrod who also had 10 points, and four rebounds. Fellow freshman Matt Townsend also looked good in 10 minutes of action and guard Javier Duren returned to play after missing a few weeks due to injury.
Bryant, a talented offensive team, fell apart down the stretch losing its seventh straight game. Corey Maynard had 15 points and Alex Francis and Claybin McMath finished with 10.
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VILLANOVA, Pa.--Jami Kranich (Hamden, Conn.), who just completed her sophomore season for the Villanova women's soccer team, has been called to participate in the training camp for the U.S. U-18 Women's National Team, which will be held in Sunrise, Fla. from December 11-18. This is the final training camp of the year and Kranich is the only collegiate player invited among the group of 26 players called in by U.S. Soccer Women's Technical Director April Heinrichs.


The players called to the training camp are being evaluated for possible spots on the team that will attempt to qualify for the 2012 FIFA U-20 Women's World Cup in Uzbekistan. That team has an age cut-off of players born on or after Jan. 1, 1992.


Kranich played every minute of all 19 games in goal for the Wildcats this season, logging 1,773:43 in the net. She made 75 saves and tallied a .682 save percentage for the year and ranked among the top shot-stoppers among BIG EAST Conference goalkeepers. Kranich finished the season eighth in the league in saves and in conference-only games was tied for seventh in saves (46) and tied for 10th in saves per game (4.18).


U.S. U-18 Women's National Team Roster By Position


Goalkeepers (3): Paige Burnett (West Coast FC; Placentia, Calif.), Bryane Heaberlin (Clear Water Chargers, Tampa, Fla.), Jami Kranich (Villanova; Hamden, Conn.)


Defenders (8): Stephanie Amack (Mustang Blast; Pleasanton, Calif.), Kelsey Bass (Dallas Texans; Dallas, Texas), Katie Naughton (Sockers FC; Arlington Heights, Ill.), Cari Roccaro (Albertson Fury; East Islip, N.Y.), Taylor Schissler (Eclipse Select; New Lenox, Ill.), Brittany Von Rueden (FC Milwaukee Nationals; Mequon, Wis.), Ryan Walker (Mustang Blast; Oakland, Calif.), Alexandra Wong (McLean Power; Rockville, Md.)

A pair of Quinnipiac basketball players applied for accelerated rehabilitation when they appeared in Meriden Superior Court on Tuesday.

Senior James Johnson and junior Jamee Jackson, two of the five players allegedly involved in an on-campus altercation on September 18, applied for the program which carries a period of probation for first-time offenders. If the program is granted and players fulfill their obligations the charges could be dismissed. They may also face probation for up to two years.

The other three players involved in the case also appeared before Judge Philip Scarpellino and had their cases continued until Jan. 17 at the same venue. Dave Johnson and Nate Gause were arrested last week upon further investigation by the Hamden Police Department. Jackson was also arrested on that day.

James Johnson and sophomore Ike Azotam were previously arrested for the assault. Azotam's case was also continued and his attorney claims that he was misidentified in the altercation.

The players' defense attorney, Thomas Lynch, told the Quinnipiac Chronicle, said he was looking for accelerated rehabilitation.

Said Lynch: “They have a hearing before the judge where we make the argument that both Jamee and James regret the incident and that they will abide by any conditions that the court may put on them, the probation, and if that’s the case then at the end of the probation period the charges are dismissed."

The incident left four students injured. One student suffered a bruised jaw, cracked tooth and a laceration to the face that required 17 stitches; a second student suffered a broken nose, which required surgery; a third student was allegedly knocked unconscious; and a fourth student suffered facial injuries.

James Johnson and Azotam were the first two arrested. They were charged with third-degree assault and second-degree breach of peace charges. On Dec. 1, after the other three players surrendered to Hamden Police, Jackson was charged with conspiracy to commit assault and assault in the third degree and second-degree breach of peace. Dave Johnson, a junior, and Gause, a freshman, were charged with third-degree conspiracy to commit assault and second-degree breach of peace.

Quinnipiac coach Tom Moore, who was at Tuesday’s hearing, suspended James Johnson for the team’s first game and the university handed other sanctions.

“All five team members who were involved have already been appropriately disciplined for the September incident by the university and received team sanctions from me as well,” Moore said in a statement. “No other disciplinary action stemming from this incident is planned at this time."

Dave Borges was on the scene as Yale edges Sacred Heart in a state battle of men's basketball teams

Here are some highlights from Monday's night win by Sacred Heart over Quinnipiac

Men’s basketball gameday
YALE AT SACRED HEART
When: Today, 7 p.m.
Where: William Pitt Center, Fairfield
Records: Yale (5-2); Sacred Heart (5-4)
Audio: sacredheartpioneers.com
KEEP AN EYE ON
Scouting Yale: The Bulldogs were dominant in Saturday’s win over Vermont. Greg Mangano scored 22 points and grabbed 15 rebounds. Yale has won three straight and four of five. Yale leads the series against SHU but has lost the last three games.
Scouting Sacred Heart: The resurgent Pioneers fell to 1-1 in the Northeast Conference with a tough overtime loss at Central Connecticut on Saturday. Shane Gibson had 32 points in the loss and Justin Swidowski had a double-double.
PROBABLE STARTERS
YALE SACRED HEART
Player Ht. Yr. Pos. PPG Player Ht. Yr. Pos. PPG
Greg Mangano 6-10 Sr. F 16.1 Shane Gibson 6-2 Jr. G 18.8
Reggie Willhite 6-4 Sr. F 13.7 Justin Swidowski 6-9 Jr. F 12.8
Austin Morgan 5-11 Jr. G 15.4 Evan Kelley 6-4 So. G 8.7
Jeremiah Kreisberg 6-1 So. F 9.4 Femi Akinpetide 6-6 Jr. F 2.7
Michael Grace 6-0 Jr. G 5.5 Chris Evans 6-3 So. G 7.1
OFF THE BENCH
Yale — Isaiah Salafia, 6-3, So., G, 1.0 ppg; Brandon Sherrod, 6-6, Fr., F, 2.7; Sacred Heart — Louis Montes, 6-4, So. G, 5.1; Stan Dulaire, 6-5, Sr., F, 4.8.
— Bill Cloutier

This comes from the Yale web site

Los Angeles, Calif. – Top-ranked USC held off a third-set comeback to defeat Yale, 3-0 (25-13, 25-13, 25-18) before 1,125 – and many Yale supporters – in a NCAA first-round match at the Galen Center on Friday night.

Yale ended the season with an 18-7 overall record and its third Ivy League title in four years.

Bridget Hearst, playing in her final Yale match, smashed a team-high seven kills, including three during a 6-1 spurt to start the third. Mollie Rogers, the Ivy Rookie of the Year, posted six kills.

The Bulldogs’ two other seniors – Katie Cordell and captain Taylor Cramm – also contributed. Cordell had two assists and three digs, while Cramm had a kill and two block assists.

Hundreds of family members, friends and Yale alumni were scattered throughout the area wearing Bulldog dark blue, many in Section 103 across from the team bench.

At the start of the third, the Bulldogs drew their loudest cheer of the night when Hearst curled around a set from Ivy League Player of the Year Kendall Polan for a gentle tip along the right side of the net. As the ball dropped to the USC side, the Yale bench jumped to their feet.

After a USC error on the next point, the Trojans called a timeout.

The Trojans, ranked No. 1 in the latest AVCA coaches’ poll, scored six of the next seven points to tie the match. The run was capped by a Alex Jupiter, one of the Pac-12’s top hitters, with a kill.

Yale (18-7, 12-2) kept the match close and held a 12-11 lead after a USC error. The Trojans tied the set for the fifth and final time before taking the lead on the next point after a Lauren Williams kill.

Allie Frappier, a second-team All-Ivy selection, cut into the Trojan lead with a blast from the right side to cut the USC edge to 16-15. Frappier finished with 14 digs, four kills, a service ace and a block assist.

USC scored the next six points to take a 22-15 lead.

Yale fought up to the final point. On match point, 24-16, the Bulldogs’ defense kept two balls alive in back-to-back sequences and before Polan setup Rogers for her fifth kill of the night.

Polan ended the night with 19 assists, nine digs, three kills and a service ace.

Rogers responded on the next point with her sixth and final kill of the evening to keep the match going.

On the ensuing point, Jupiter tipped a ball along the left sideline to end the match.

Yale came out strong in the first set. With most of the team playing its first NCAA tournament match, the Bulldogs didn’t seem to be nervous.

Polan tipped a Maddie Rudnick pass onto the USC side to give the Bulldogs the first point of the match and prompted a loud cheer from Yale’s fans. After a Sara Shaw kill, Rogers fired a kill to give Yale the next point.

After a Yale error, McHaney Carter slammed a Yale kill to give Yale a 3-2 advantage. USC tallied the next three points.

Erica Reetz, a sophomore all-Ivy selection, recorded her only kill of the night to cut the deficit to 5-4. The Trojans rattled off the next five of the next six points.

Frappier and Haley Wessels halted the run with consecutive kills for the Bulldogs. USC scored six of the next seven points and never trailed again in the set.

The Trojans scored the first two points of set two before Yale capitalized on an error and a Polan ace to tie the match. USC pulled away with a run similar to the first set before Yale showed another refuse-to-quit performance.

Down 21-9, Hearst struck from the right side followed by a Gina Finke ace that grazed the net before falling to the court.

After a Yale error, Polan used a sneak attack to cut the deficit to 22-13. USC scored the final three points to take the set.

I missed the Yale game on Saturday but here's Dan Nowak's story on the contest and another big effort by Greg Mangano


NEW HAVEN – Yale men’s basketball coach James Jones has been waiting, yearning for the kind of dominating first half the Bulldogs played against Vermont on Saturday at the Lee Amphitheater.

The Bulldogs built up a double-digit lead with just under 11 minutes left in the half. They had 16 rebounds, four blocks, two steals, five three-pointers, shot 87.5 percent at the free throw line and had a 54.2 field-goal percent age in the first half.

When the final second ticked off the clock in the second half, Greg Mangano of Orange had 22 points, 15 rebounds and three blocks and Jeremiah Kreisberg and Austin Morgan added 14 points each to lead Yale to a 68-52 win over Vermont in front of a crowd of 1,205. Mangano and Kreisberg led all scorers with 11 points each at halftime.

"Yes, that was one of our better first halves in a few years," Jones said. "We did a great job on the defensive end and with our rebounding. That was the key, not only in the first half but the whole game.

"We always talk about being solid and playing a complete game. Sometimes we do that, sometimes we don’t. This team has the potential to be very special. That first half is a good example and hopefully we can build on that."

Yale (5-2), coming off a three-game road trip, has won three in a row and four of its last five games.

"It felt great to be back home and it felt good playing on our home court," Mangano said. "We had a great crowd for a Saturday afternoon. Whenever we were making a run it was pretty loud and that pumped us all up."

In the first half, Yale took a 4-2 lead and never looked back, dominating in every phase of the game. The Bulldogs were even hot from 3-point range with five treys in nine attempts.

A Kreisberg 10-foot jump shot gave the Bulldogs a 22-9 lead with 10:40 to go in the half.

Vermont worked the score down to single digits when Four McGlynn made two free throws to cut the Bulldogs lead to 29-20 with 5:32 left in the half.

The Bulldogs responded by closing the first half on a 9-0 run. Morgan’s third 3-pointer of the game gave the Bulldogs a 34-30 lead with 3:25 to go. Brandon Sherrod’s layup with 45 seconds to go capped the run to make it 38-20 at halftime.

"They were quick but I’m not surprised by their speed," Vermont coach John Becker said. "Yale beat us the full 40 minutes. We didn’t have it from the jump tonight."

The Catamounts (4-4) came out more aggressive in the second half, possesssed the ball more and actually outscored the Bulldogs 32-30. But Vermont couldn’t overcome the first-half deficit.

The closest Vermont could get was 55-43 when Luke Apfeld made a layup with 5:10 left in the game.

By Bill Cloutier

Assistant Sports Editor

bcloutier@nhregister.com

HAMDEN — It was too early to call Saturday’s game against Bryant a must-win for the Quinnipiac men’s basketball team. It wasn’t too early for the Bobcats to play that way.



Quinnipiac raced out to a 27-point lead in the first half and cruised to an 83-72 victory in a Northeast Conference game at the TD Bank Sports Center Saturday afternoon. The victory snapped a three-game losing streak for the Bobcats who rebounded from a lifeless effort against Sacred Heart just two days ago.

"In light of how poorly we played offense on Thursday, for emotionally and confidence-wise it was really good for us," Quinnipiac coach Tom Moore said. "We put up 44 points really quickly. It was 44-19 us with five minutes to go in the first half.

"We had great body language and you could just see our spirits lift."

Saturday also saw the emergence of enigmatic forward Jamee Jackson for Quinnipiac (3-4, 1-1 NEC). Jackson scored 21 points and grabbed nine rebounds and appears ready to join James Johnson and Ike Azotam as a legitimate option on offense. The Bobcats have struggled to find consistency in that area.

"I’m thrilled with the performance of Jamee Jackson," Moore said. "Jamee’s really blossoming now as a junior. He’s had the best 10 practices in a row since he’s been at Quinnipiac. That’s what’s fun about college basketball ... You expect growth and development and that’s what we’re starting to see with him and it’s really exciting."

Said Jackson: "It was a tough loss on Thursday. We expected to win the game but knew we couldn’t dwell on the loss. We were excited to get back into practice and it carried over into the game.

"Against Fairfield and American I had good games. Then I got into foul trouble but I kept being aggressive and kept playing hard on defense and I knew it would come if I kept playing hard."

Bryant was led by Alex Francis and Corey Maynard, who both scored 18 points. Francis scored 20 points against Notre Dame earlier in the season and helped the Bulldogs stun Quinnipiac last year when they erased a 25-point lead to beat the Bobcats at Hamden. But Jackson also did a solid job slowing down the Bulldogs’ exciting swingman and Bryant performed no such miracles this time.

Overall, Quinnipiac played its best offensive game of the season. It shot 55 percent from the field in the first half including a 5-for-9 performance from 3-point range.

The Bulldogs make things a bit interesting when they ended the first half on a 16-3 run hitting four straight 3-pointers in the surge. Quinnipiac held a 47-33 lead at the break and outrebounded the Bulldogs 24-9 in the first half.

Bryant refused to quit and cut the deficit to 54-43 midway through the second half when the Bobcats imposed their will. Following a missed jumper by Dave Johnson, Azotam raced from the baseline to the top of the key to steal a rebound and fired a pass to James Johnson on the wing who buried a 3-pointer.

Bryant never got closer than 11 points the rest of the way and that came in the final minute.

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Here are Tom Moore's thoughts on the Bobcats NEC loss to Sacred Heart and some highlights from the game.

By Bill Cloutier
Assistant Sports Editor
bcloutier@nhregister.com
HAMDEN — Three more Quinnipiac University basketball players have been arrested in connection with a Sept. 18 assault, police said.
Charged today were Jamee Jackson, 20, of Irvington, N.J.; David Johnson, 22, of Jackson, N. J. and Nate Gause, of Poughkeepsie, N.Y. The trio turned themselves into police on Thursday morning. They all posted bond and were released.
QU basketball players James Johnson and Ike Azotam were previously arrested and their cases are pending. James Johnson was suspended for one game this season as a result of the incident.
Four Quinnipiac students were injured in the assault, according to Capt. Ronald Smith. One student suffered a bruised jaw, cracked tooth and a laceration to the face, which required 17 stitches. A second student suffered a broken nose, which required surgery. A third was allegedly knocked unconscious and a fourth received facial injuries, Smith said.
Detective Michael DePalma conducted the investigation. All five players are schedule to appear in Meriden Superior Court on Dec. 6.
Jackson was charged with third-degree assault, conspiracy to commit third-degree assault and breach of peace. David Johnson was charged with conspiracy to commit third-degree assault and breach of peace. Gause was charged with third-degree conspiracy to commit assault and breach of peace.
“All five team members who were involved have already been appropriately disciplined for the September incident by the university and received team sanctions from me as well,” said Tom Moore, head men’s basketball coach. “No other disciplinary action stemming from this incident is planned at this time.”
According to the Hamden police Captain Ronald Smith the incidents began on Sept. 17 the night before the assault when James Johnson was confronted by another Quinnipiac University student.
“During that dispute, which was verbal in nature it seems that a large crowd gathered around James Johnson and the Quinnipiac University student,” Smith said. “Someone from the crowd allegedly swung at James Johnson. I don’t know if it actually struck him.
According to the police, James Johnson then got some of his teammates and came back looking for this individual. When they came back campus police were present and there was no further incident.
“The next day several of the basketball players were searching out this individual kid,” Smith said. “They entered a dorm, which was not their dorm, found the student and an altercation took place. Several of the Quinnipiac University students suffered severe injuries.
All of the players involved in the alleged altercation were present at Thursday night’s game and were expected to play.
According to a source, Azotam claims he was misidentified in the assault but that was not confirmed by the police.
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