Fresh off of a week-long break with no games, the Quinnipiac men’s basketball team didn’t lose a beat as it defeated Stonehill 80-69 on Sunday afternoon in front of a great crowd in Hamden.
This win makes it three in a row for the Bobcats and five overall so far this season. Those five wins are good for first in the MAAC through three weeks of non-conference play.
“We found a way to win the game,” Quinnipiac head coach Tom Pecora said. “Whether it’s a good win or a bad loss, the key to this whole process is learning from it.”
Many players shined for the Bobcats in the win, but none brighter than graduate student guard Matt Balanc. Balanc finished with a season-high 24 points to go along with five rebounds and five assists, the latter of which was a career high.
Balanc had 17 of his 24 points in the first half, going a perfect 4-for-4 from three in the first 20 minutes. His six triples were the most he’s hit in a single game in a Bobcat uniform.
“Yesterday I was talking with coach and he said that they were probably going to play zone against us and you’ll probably get 10 threes off,” Balanc said. “I got some shots up this morning and once I hit my first one I started feeling hot.”
To see the last time that Balanc scored at least 24 points in a game, you’d have to go all the way back to December 2021 in a road win against Manhattan – when he scored 25.
Quinnipiac started out red hot from distance, weaving around the Stonehill three-two zone that Balanc mentioned to find the open man. The Bobcats splashed nine threes in the first half and finished with 14 total.
Two Bobcats joined Balanc in double figures in the win. Sophomore forward Amarri Tice had 14 points, including a pair of thunderous dunks in the second half. Junior forward Alexis Reyes had 13 points and made three three pointers.
“I thought Reyes did a great job in his floor game and was great against the pressure,” Pecora said. “He made some good decisions.”
Defensively, the Bobcats made it challenging for the Skyhawks to do much of anything, especially at the rim. Quinnipiac had nine blocks, five of which belonged to Tice and two to redshirt freshman forward Rihards Vavers.
The Skyhawks made it a ballgame early on, trailing by just two points with around nine minutes left in the first half. This caused Pecora to frustratingly call a timeout trying to ignite a spark in his guys.
“When you’re trying to consume in four or five new guys into our rotation,” Pecora said. “It’s going to take a little bit more time so we just have to come to work and be serious about it.”
Whatever he said in the huddle worked, as the Bobcats went on a run and led by 16 at halftime. The shots continued to fall in the second half and the lead increased to 28 with just under 11 minutes to play. From there, the wheels started to fall off and the Bobcats ended the game on a 25-8 run.
“If we’re going to be the team I expect us to be, we need to be able to stay locked in for 40 minutes. Not for 35, but 40 full minutes,” Pecora said.
“We’ve come a long way and we still have a long way to go,” Balanc added. “Your best basketball is supposed to be played in March and if we continue to get better, we’re going to be a very good team.”
The Bobcats will have four days to work on it as they’re set to make the annual trip to Buffalo a little early this season. On Friday, Quinnipiac opens up MAAC play against Canisuis, and on Sunday they play Niagara. Both games will be great tests to what has already been a strong start in Hamden.
“There’s a lot of things that we have to get better at,” Pecora remarked.
Friday’s game against the Golden Griffins is set to tip off at 7 p.m. at the Koessler Athletic Center in Buffalo.
