Late 27-4 run by Owls leads to another conference win

Pat Longobardi, Sports Writer-
A 27-4 run over the final 8:33 led Southern Connecticut State University men’s basketball to a 63-53 win over Pace University on Feb. 7 in a Northeast-10 Conference game at the Moore Field House.
The game was tight and physical early with good possessions and ball movement by both teams.
Pace’s Delroy Daley hit a jumper to take a 6-4 lead. Southern led, 7-6, when Greg Langston hit a three after a good possession off offensive rebounds.
David Eismeier capped off Pace’s 7-0 run, 13-4 overall, hitting a three from the top of the key, to lead, 13-7. Southern then called timeout at 11:22. Eismeier later made it 22-16 after a three at the top of the key.
Pace led Southern at halftime, 23-18.
“In the first half, we seemed out of sync,” said Trevon Hamlet. “In the second half, we knew what we wanted to do to win.”
In the second half, Southern quickly went on a 5-0 run, tying the game at 23. This was highlighted by Hamlet’s dunk, assisted by Chris Harris, who lofted up the ball to the glass after a steal.
Southern’s dunks were not done, making four in the half. Southern took their first lead since the first half, 27-25, after a dunk by Dexton Williamson, drawing the foul, assisted to Harris, with 16:44 left. Williamson would miss the free throw.

Eismeier’s three-pointer from the right wing had Pace on an 11-2 run, leading 36-29. Southern then called timeout at 13:04. Pace continued with a 13-5 run, 24-7 overall, taking a 49-36 lead, with 8:33 left.
Williamson, a senior, said Southern had been down this road before, and knows what it takes to come back.
“The energy picks up more, and with Greg (Langston) having a rough game, it was up to other players to step up,” said Williamson. “Chris set the tempo with three or four turnovers in a row and gave us more chances.”
Southern went on a 16-0 run to lead, 52-49, with 3:17 left. Chazz McCarter tied it at 49 with a step-back three at the top of the key. Hamlet put Southern ahead for good after a lay-up, plus the foul. Pace scored at 2:27 with Daley’s lay-up, to cut their deficit 52-51. Southern extended the lead to 57-51 when Williamson hit his first three pointer of his career and a McCarter dunk. Pace sent Southern to the free-throw line to end the game.
Eismeier led Pace with 15 points and six rebounds. Keon Williams had 10 points, 14 rebounds, one block, two steals and five turnovers in 34 minutes. Daley had seven points, 14 rebounds, two assists and two blocks. Denzel Primus-Devonish had eight points, five rebounds, two steals and four turnovers. Adrian Mills had six points, four rebounds, two assists and two steals in 34 minutes.
Southern’s head coach Michael Donnelly said he was still trying to figure out how Southern won the game. “We should not be satisfied,” said Donnelly. “We need to look at what we did wrong.”
Hamlet led Southern with 18 points, 11 rebounds, three assists and three blocks in 35 minutes. Williamson had 15 points and eight rebounds. McCarter had 15 points, 13 in the second half; eight rebounds; two blocks and one steal in 35 minutes. Harris had 10 points, two rebounds, four assists, one block and four steals.
Southern defeated Pace, 82-66, on Nov. 23, in Pleasantville, N.Y.
Southern’s next home game is on Feb. 16 against Adelphi.
Southern was 12-10, 9-9 in the Northeast-10 Conference, continuing a two game winning streak. Pace was 10-13, 6-12 in the conference.