Schools

QU Men Lose Monday

Men's Basketball Concludes Non-Conference Slate With 70-64 Loss at Hampton.

 

The Quinnipiac University men’s basketball team was defeated in its final non-conference game of the season on Monday night, falling short to Hampton University, 70-64, at the Convocation Center in Hampton, Va. Ike Azotam led all Bobcats with 13 points and 11 rebounds in the team’s first of three straight games on the road.  

Azotam came off the bench and collected his 22nd career double-double despite battling foul trouble in the second half. He went 5-of-10 from the floor and picked up four of his 11 rebounds on the offensive end. Shaq Shannon had 11 points including three, threes and Zaid Hearst finished with 10 points – all coming in the second half. 

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Fouls began to plague the Bobcats in the second half, but Quinnipiac hung tough into the waning minutes. Trailing by four points, 60-56, with less than five minutes to play, Hearst knocked down a pair of free-throws and Dave Johnson connected on a runner in the lane to tie the score up at 60 apiece.

Unfortunately for Quinnipiac, that would be as close as the Bobcats came in the final four minutes with Hampton rattling off five straight points and seven of the next eight for a 67-61 lead. Evan Conti cut the deficit to three points with a trifecta, but the Pirates sealed the deal with three free-throws in the closing seconds.

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Quinnipiac held Hampton to 33.9 percent from the floor and controlled the glass, 45-41. However, 20 turnovers resulted in 19 points on the other end and 27 fouls aided 25 points from the free-throw line for Hampton. 

The Pirates were led by Deron Powers and Emmanuel Okoroba who each finished with 16 points. Jasper Williams chipped in with 15 points which included a 4-for-5 night from behind the arc. Du’Vaughn Maxwell added eight points and a team-best 10 rebounds. 

Quinnipiac surrendered the game’s first eight points, but countered with an 18-9 run, which included an 8-0 run that was capped off by a Shannon three-pointer. Hampton carried a 29-28 lead into the locker room at halftime. 

Ousmane Drame and Johnson each finished with seven points for the Bobcats, with Drame pulling down 11 rebounds before fouling out. Johnson dished out a team-high four assists. Conti and Justin Harris had six points apiece. 

The Bobcats are back in action on Thursday, January 17 with the middle game of their three-game road trip. Quinnipiac heads to Pennsylvania for Saint Francis (Pa.) and then Robert Morris on January 19. Both games will begin at 7 p.m.


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