The Quinnipiac University Bobcats faced off against the Fairfield Stags Friday night, ultimately falling 85-81 after a cold streak late in the second half. The loss couldn’t come at a worse time for the team, as they lost their third straight game and now have just a half-game lead on first place in the MAAC Conference.
Before tipoff even commenced, fans packed the M&T Bank Arena for what was one of the most highly anticipated games of the season. The game also got national attention being that it was on ESPNU. Something that Bobcats head coach Tom Pecora emphasized should become a more regular occurrence in MAAC play.
“I think the game of the week should be here every week,” Pecora said. “There’s a lot of really good basketball in the state of Connecticut.”
The game started with a bang, as Quinnipiac guard Matt Balanc got off on a fast break off a Fairfield turnover in the opening seconds of the game, Balanc raced down the court and threw down a tomahawk dunk to kick off the scoring. He would then stay on the early heater by knocking down a deep three-pointer, scoring Quinnipiac’s first five points.
After that though, both teams got into a little bit of a back-and-forth game. Balanc and forward Paul Otieno kept the game close for the Bobcats the whole first half scoring 10 points each. In particular, Otieno’s five first-half rebounds created many second-chance opportunities for the team. This was a big reason the team was able to keep the score tied going into halftime.
Despite the close score though, it felt like Fairfield was in control for much of the half, always having an answer when the Bobcats would start rallying. Much of this early sense of control came from the shooting and scoring of Fairfield guard Jalen Leach, who scored 16 of his 27 total points in the first half.
With Fairfield feeling in constant control, Bobcats forward Amarri Tice hit a buzzer-beater three from well beyond the arc to knot things up at 39 going into the second half. If there was one area the Bobcats could have improved upon going into the second half to potentially win this contest, it would have been more physicality on offense and trying to get foul calls. The Bobcats didn’t shoot a single free throw in the first half.
“We got to play with greater physicality and we gotta stop settling for the pass or tough shots instead of taking the ball to the whole,” Pecora said.
The second half would kick off very similarly to the first half, with Quinnipiac getting an early scoring barrage. This time around, guard Alexis Reyes would hit a midrange floater to kick off the scoring in the second half. A few possessions later, Reyes would hit a three from the top right corner to give Quinnipiac a 44-40 lead.
On the Bobcats’ next possession, Tice would hit another three extending Quinnipiac’s lead to 47-40. This however was the largest lead Quinnipiac would have on the night as three straight buckets from the Stags would tie the game once again at 47 and the game would become a back-and-forth bout once again. Ultimately though, a big part of Quinnipiac’s undoing in this game turned out to be too many second-chance opportunities given up, which led to easy points in the paint off of Fairfield offensive rebounds.
“I think they (Fairfield) had eight in the second half, and those were backbreakers for us that’s just unacceptable,” Pecora said.
With too many second-chance opportunities, Fairfield shooting 50% from three for the game and a crucial two-minute stretch where Quinnipiac went scoreless within the final six minutes all proved to be too much to overcome as the Bobcats would lose at home.
Despite this, coach Pecora doesn’t seem phased and had some steadying words for his team postgame.
“This is what teams go through in the course of a season,” Pecora said. “It’s not what happens it’s how you handle what happens. So we’ll be ready to come in tomorrow and bust our ass and work hard.”
Fans won’t have to wait long to see how the team responds, as they are set to take on Rider this Sunday at 2 p.m.
