WILLIMANTIC, Conn. – In its first game since December 11, the Eastern Connecticut State University men's basketball team returned to action on the second day of the Eastern Connecticut State University Holiday Invitational to defeat Bowdoin College, 86-64, Thursday afternoon at Geissler Gymnasium.
Behind a career-high 17 points in the season debut of junior guard Jalen Williams (Simsbury) and stout team defense, the Warriors (7-4) cruised to a 22-point victory over the Polar Bears (8-4), who were returning to action 12 hours after defeating Bridgewater State University in their opening game Thursday night.
The matchup was the first between the two squads since the 1989-1990 season and the fourth consecutive victory for the Warriors in the series history.
Both teams would exchange baskets early with sophomore guard Max Lee (Norwich) leading the way for Eastern with six points to give his team an 8-6 lead. Bowdoin would take its final lead of the game when first-year guard Cole Hanin hit a three to put the Polar Bears in front by one, 9-8. The Warriors would respond with a 6-0 run behind a pair of layups from junior forward Rakesh Tibby (East Hartford) which would be assisted by Lee and a Williams three to take a six-point advantage.
Threatening to stay in the game, Bowdoin used a quick 3-0 run to bring themselves within five with 10:05 remaining in the first half behind a Hanin free throw and layup by junior forward Jack Shea. Over the next two minutes, the Warriors would blitz the Polar Bears with a 9-0 run in which four different players recorded points. Most notable on the court during the stretch was junior transfer guard Meikyle Murray (Bronx, NY) who made his season debut for Eastern. Murray sank a free throw to go along with a rebound and assist as part of his three-point, three rebound, one assist first half in which the guard played eight minutes.
After the Polar Bears trimmed the Warrior lead down to 12 following a layup by junior forward Xander Workman, two 7-0 runs by Eastern around a three-pointer by Bowdoin junior guard Manav Randhawa lead Eastern to their largest lead of the half at 23 points. A layup by senior guard Taiga Kagitomi brought the Warriors lead down to 21, 48-27, heading into the locker room for halftime.
In 18 minutes for Lee and Williams, the guard duo recorded double-digit point totals with Lee coming away with 11 points on 4-of-5 shooting and 3-of-3 shooting from long range while adding on four rebounds, four assists, and a block. In his season debut, Williams finished the first half with 10 points on 4-of-6 shooting and was a perfect 2-for-2 from three-point land along with two rebounds, an assist, and a steal.
Bowdoin looked to chip away at its 21-point deficit and kicked off the second half with a 5-0 run behind one of only 13 Eastern turnovers on the afternoon to trail by only 16 points with 18:54 left. That was the closest the Polar Bears would get to catching up as the Warriors hit their first seven shots of the half, including one three, amidst Bowdoin's furious rally attempt to take a commanding 21-point lead with 14:31 remaining. Eastern led by as many as 27 points with ten minutes left in the game as the two teams continued to match each other on the offensive end.
The suffocating Warrior defense stifled the top two offensive threats for the Polar Bears who had their way with Bridgewater State University's defense less than 24 hours before the matchup. Sophomore guard Michael Simonds and first-year guard Afamdi Achufusi had combined for 40 points on 15-of-33 shooting (8-of-14 from three) against the Bears on Thursday night. Simonds finished that game with 30 points on 11-of-23 shooting (8-for-14 from three) while Achufusi fell three assists shy of a triple-double with 10 points, 11 rebounds, and seven assists.
Simonds and Achufusi were held to just eight points on 3-of-18 shooting (2-of-9 from three) by Eastern's defense on Friday afternoon. Simonds missed his first seven three-point attempts before knocking down his first and only three with just under 16 minutes remaining in the game to record his only points of the game. Achufusi would score all five of his points in the second half in addition to three of his four assists on 2-of-6 shootings (1-for-3 from three). The defense of the Warriors continued to make their mark on the afternoon by manufacturing 14 turnovers which led to 19 points on the offensive end of the floor.
With the guard duo of Max Lee and Jalen Williams starting together for the first time in their careers, the pair nearly recorded a triple-double, finishing with 31 points on 12-of-19 shooting (7-of-9 from three), 14 rebounds, and nine combined assists. Making his season debut, Williams finished the game with 17 points on 7-of-10 shooting (3-for-3 from three) and six rebounds.
Helping out on offense for Eastern was the bench which record 25 points in the game and was led by junior forward Rakesh Tibby (East Hartford) who came in after starting junior forward Quinton Lott (Bridgeport) suffered an injury in the opening minute. Tibby recorded four points and an assist during the stretch in which Lott was sidelined, en route to an eight-point, three rebound game in his season-high 21 minutes played.
The Warriors will turn their attention back to Little East Conference play when the calendar turns to 2022 with their final 13 games of the season coming from within the conference. It starts on January 5 at home in Geissler Gymnasium against Rhode Island College at 6 p.m. The Anchormen currently rank second in the Little East at 3-1 in conference play ahead of Eastern who sit in third-place at 2-1. A win for the Warriors would give them the head-to-head tiebreaker over Rhode Island College in the early stages of the conference season. Eastern snapped a three-game losing streak against the Anchormen in their last matchup which took place during the 2020-2021 season when they emerged with the 72-68 win at home.