The men’s basketball team celebrates their win against Army.
@JASPERS.MBB / INSTAGRAM
By Owen McWalters & Leyla J Mercado, Contributor & Assistant News Editor
The Manhattan University men’s basketball team defeated the Black Knights of Army on Friday night with a final score of 80-79. With the Jaspers coming off an impressive win against their cross town rival, Fordham, the team looked to continue their winning ways.
The first points of the game came from the Jaspers, with sophomore guard Jaden Winston shooting a layup that got two points on the board. Shortly after, Army shot two layups, bringing them in for their first lead of the game, 4-2.
The first half saw a well-paced match between the Jaspers and the Knights, with the largest lead of the first half coming after a jumper from Army’s senior guard Isaiah Caldwell, who brought the score to 19-14 eight minutes into game play. The Jaspers didn’t allow this lead for long, with a layup from senior guard/forward Wesley Robinson and a three-pointer from freshman forward Fraser Roxburgh bringing the score back to a tie, 19-19 with 11 minutes left in the half.
The score continued to flip-flop, with the Jaspers taking control back by the end of the half. A last minute triple by redshirt sophomore guard Devin Dinkins was the deciding shot before halftime, bringing the Jaspers to a foreshadowing one-point 39-38 lead.
Moving into the second half, the Jaspers kept their momentum through an off rebound by freshman forward Will Sydnor. A missed layup and rebound off of junior guard Masiah Gilyard occurred with a great tip in and freethrow right after, which left the score at 44-43, MU in the lead with 17 minutes left in game play.
With an intense crowd, and a total of 14 lead changes, the complexity of the game was constantly changing throughout the night.
The 16th minute of gameplay alone saw 10 points added to the board, with five going to each team.
With 13 minutes left, the Knights were able to handle the Jaspers, gaining a six point lead after a layup from junior forward Jorn Evanson. A pull-up from Knights’ senior guard Jalen Rucker, who put up 20 points altogether in the game, brought Army to 60-52. The Jaspers began to close this lead after a seven-point unanswered run, which closed the deficit to within one shot, 71-69 Army lead. The last minutes of the game kept Army ahead. After a dunk from Robinson in the last 20 seconds of the game, it was looking like the game would come down to a one-point win for the Knights, 79-78.
The last three seconds of game play shocked Draddy, as Robinson quickly led MU to victory through a turnover by Dinkins, which led into a timeout followed by a sub in and out and a turnover by Army. Shaquil Bender then made a steal at the last second, which was followed by Robinson making a buzzer-beating jumper. The score was 80-79, leaving the Jaspers ecstatic after a shock win.
Robinson finished with 11 points, three assists and nine rebounds. He shot five of nine from the field, and helped lead the team to the win. He was able to work quickly on his feet, securing a win through his clutch play in the final moments, with his determination on the court being vital.
Robinson spoke about his last minute defeat, quick tactics and what this win means for the Jaspers’ future this season.
“I’d say the back to back getting stops,” Robinson said. “The resiliency of this team is unbelievable, and I really think we can go far in MAAC play.”
Winston, another crucial player in Friday’s game, also put up a remarkable performance. Through skillful execution and rightful decision making, Winston helped drive the team to their victory. He finished with 17 points, five assists and five rebounds. Shooting seven of 15 from the field, Winston made it his priority to demonstrate that the Jaspers are here to win.
When asked about what was working offensively, Winston explained it as “perfection.”
“Nothing in particular,” Winston said. “I feel like we ran the offense to perfection. It was just me getting the shots, teammates giving me confidence and finding me into my spots … I’ve had the confidence in all of our guys. That’s what we feel like. We don’t worry about offense. It could be anybody’s night any given night. We’re all in the gym, we all work out and we all have confidence, so my teammates telling me to keep shooting, despite the misses affected my performance tonight.”
John Gallagher, the head coach of the men’s basketball program at MU, spoke on his view of the night’s climatic game.
“I think anytime you see us go one on one, it’s not going to end well,” Gallagher said. “We had a bad stretch. We were down eight or nine. I call the time out. I draw something up, and we get a wide open shot. Dinkins got fouled and he makes two foul shots. That sequence saved us and it was 60-52 or 60-51,” Gallagher said. “Then we went and stopped and then they kept scoring, but we kept hanging and they executed perfectly out of the defensive. They called full time out, we put Wes on the ball. I went into full denial, I said if they throw over the top they throw over the top. If they throw over the top, we steal it and a miracle happens.”
The Jaspers look to continue their winning streak on Tuesday as they match up against the Cavaliers of Virginia.