Bobby Martinez – Sports Writer
NEW HAVEN — It has been a season of complete domination on both sides of the ball for Southern Connecticut State University’s men’s basketball team. After defeating St. Anselm College 78-72, the Owls are headed to the Elite 8.
After kicking off the first game of the year against UCONN, despite it being a pre-season game, the Owls looked like a team that was headed for a great season. Led by their three headed monster in Tylon Smith, Luke Houston and Greg Langston, the Owls can score from anywhere on the court.
There was 1:30 left in the game against St. Anselm College when senior, Langston, started to realize his team might make it to the Elite 8. He said after the game, his emotions got to him for a bit and forgot there was still a game to finish.
“I actually got a little emotional with about 1:30 left,” Langston said. “Then they hit a three-pointer and I quickly got settled. When the clock hit zero I just put my face in a towel and thought of all the things that have happened here in four years.”
A lot of credit goes to Owls Head Coach, Michael Donnelly who took over a program that had two back-to-back 2-25 with former head coach, Marc Rybczyk in control. Langston and Donnelly share a bond that started four years ago when this basketball program started to turn around said Langston. Each year with Donnelly as coach, the Owls have improved in the win column.
“My freshman year was actually the best from one season in Division II history; I thought that was great. But this?” said Langston in an article written by the CT Post. “This year, we blew the win total and everything out the window. This has come full circle for us and we’re just going to keep playing.”
But this team, overall, does everything a coach dreams their kids do on a court. They are not the biggest team but they play lock up defense. Freshman, Michael Mallory has played a major role in the team’s success this year alongside sophomore forward Deshawn Murphy. Both, Murphy and Mallory stretch the floor which allows Smith to be able to attack the rim.
Houston has been their defensive anchor this season with his physical defense that gets under players skin. But there next matchup against the University of Central Missouri won’t be easy. Central Missouri has only three players in Daylen Robinson, Dillon Deck and Charles Hammork who are scoring in double figures. The Owls on the other hand have four players who are averaging double figures. When it comes to size, Central Missouri has nine players over six feet and the Owls have five.
Despite the Owls undersized roster compared to Central Missouri, the Owls have a team that feeds off each other and have proven that they can compete against anyone. Their first pre-season game against UConn, the Owls played a hard fought game. From that moment on, this team knew that they capable of going far this season.
With a 30-2 record, the Owls are riding a 19 game winning streak that started on Nov. 11 against Bentley University. Their first loss came against Pace University where they lost in double overtime 80-78. The Owls managed to get their revenge against Pace later on in the season they dominated throughout the game and won 94-69.
Their second loss came against Southern New Hampshire University where they loss 99-90. Since then, the Owls have been running through their opponents. As the Owls prepare for their Elite 8 matchup against Central Missouri March 2 at 1.pm. The Owls hope to continue their dream season by capturing the most coveted trophy of them all, a NCAA DII National Championship. Due to their 30-2 record, the Owls will head into the game as the number four overall seed.
