OPENING TIP
Score: Lipscomb 81 | Queens 75
Records: Lipscomb (24-9 overall, 14-4 ASUN) | Queens (19-14 overall, 11-7 ASUN)
Location: Allen Arena (Nashville, Tenn.)
THE SHORT STORY
In their first-ever ASUN Tournament Semifinals appearance, the Queens University of Charlotte men's basketball team went on the road to the top seed in Lipscomb and gave the Bisons everything they could handle before falling in overtime inside Allen Arena 81-75. The difference in the game proved to be at the free throw line as the Bisons converted 27-of-29 opportunities from the charity stripe while the Royals went 9-of-12.
BY THE NUMBERS
-Cedar Hills, Utah native
Jaxon Pollard led the Royals with a career-high 17 points on 6-of-10 shooting from the field, and 4-of-6 from downtown. The senior buried a career-high four threes while also adding three rebounds and two assists.
-Veteran
Leo Colimerio reached double figures for the 25
th game this season with 13 points. The Sao Paulo, Brazil native added eight rebounds and two assists to his night.
-Freshman
Yoav Berman buried key buckets and finished with 13 points, two rebounds, and an assist.
-Senior
Kalib Mathews turned in his 13
th double figure performance with 11 points while adding five boards on the defensive end.
-The ASUN Defensive Player of the Year
Malcolm Wilson shined on the defensive end grabbing a team-high eight rebounds while adding three blocks.
-
Nasir Mann,
Chris Ashby, and
Bryce Cash rounded out the scoring with a combined 16 points.
-The Royals nationally-ranked bench was on full display outscoring the Bisons 36-2 on the night.
-The ASUN Player of the Year Jacob Ognacevic led the Bisons with a 21-point and 12-rebound double-double.
NOTABLE MOMENTS
-Queens jumped on the top-seeded Bisons early connecting on 75 percent of their attempts to grab a 15-4 lead and force an early Lipscomb timeout. Coming out of the break, the Bisons responded with an 8-0 behind a pair of three-pointers from Joe Anderson to cut the deficit to 15-12 heading into the under-12 media break.
-The visiting Royals would extend their lead back to seven, but another 9-2 spurt from the Bisons would tie the game back up with 3:04 remaining in the first half.
-Lipscomb closed the first half connecting on 6-of-8 shots from the field to erase an early deficit and take a 34-33 lead into the half. Despite the rhythm finish, the Royals forced nine first-half turnovers which were converted into 10 points.
-Trailing 42-40 with 14:36 remaining in the game, the Royals ripped off a 9-0 run to grab their largest lead of the game since early in the first half. The run was capped off by an and-one from
Jaxon Pollard.
-Lipscomb would adjust and find their rhythm sparking a 16-4 run over a four-minute span to take a two point lead into the final two minutes.
-With 41.0 seconds remaining in the game and trailing by two, the Bisons called a timeout and drew up a play to get a layup from the league's Player of the Year in Jacob Ognacevic to tie the game 67-67. Queens would call a timeout and draw up the final shot which freshman
Yoav Berman took from the perimeter, but rimmed out. Senior
Kalib Mathews got the offensive board and attempted the putback but was unsuccessful sending the game to overtime.
-In the five-minute overtime period, the Bisons outscored the Royals 14-8 with their last seven points coming from the free throw line as the top seed clinched their spot in the ASUN Championship.
INSIDE THE BOXSCORE
-The Royals defensive intensity forced 13 turnovers by the Bisons which the visitors converted into 15 points. Coming into the tournament, Lipscomb was the second-best squad in the league in turnovers per game.
-Lipscomb converted 27 free throw attempts marking the most by a Queens opponent this season.
SOCIAL MEDIA
Be sure to follow Queens Men's Basketball on
Twitter,
Instagram, and
TikTok for news and updates throughout the season. Fans are also encouraged to follow Queens Athletics on social media to stay up to date on all the Royals sports in action.