PHILADELPHIA, Pa. - Battling through adversity is a trait all successful teams possess. On Wednesday night, Longwood men's basketball demonstrated that resiliency in its first road test at Atlantic 10 foe Saint Joseph's.
The Lancers (1-1) trailed by as many as 15 points in the second half and could have packed it in for the five-hour bus ride home facing a team that won 24 games last season and was picked toward the top of the A-10.
Instead, the Lancers battled back, slicing the margin to as little as three on multiple occasions in the closing minutes, and had a chance to draw even in the final four minutes. Unfortunately, the Hawks (1-0) made just enough plays down the stretch to hold off Longwood, 82-73, at Michael J. Hagen Arena '85.
Fifth-year wing
Alphonzo Billups III led four Lancers in double figures with 17 points, hitting 4-of-9 from distance. Senior
Jaylen Benard tallied a double-double for the second-straight contest, finishing with 13 points and 10 rebounds. Sophomores
MJ Williams and
TJ Robinson finished with 14 and 13 points, respectively.
The home team used a strong close the opening 20 minutes and a Jaiden Glover-Toscano 3-pointer less than a minute into the second half to extend its lead to the largest at 43-28.
The deficit was 14 with 12:39 left before the Lancers started their comeback. An
Isaiah Kalala dunk sparked an 8-0 Lancers run. Freshman
Jorke Aav and Billups III followed with back-to-back 3-pointers, cutting the margin to 54-48 midway through the second frame.
Another Billups III 3-pointer followed by a Robinson lay-up, knifing through the lane, closed the gap to 65-62 with 4:45 to play.
A Williams 3-pointer once again narrowed the gap to three, 68-65, with 3:55 left. On the ensuing Longwood possession, the visitors had a chance to draw even, but Benard's triple was off the mark.
Glover-Toscano, who was named to the preseason All-A-10 First Team, scored five-straight Hawks' points to stretch the lead back to eight. Despite a pair of Robinson free throws closing the deficit to four with two minutes remaining, SJU scored nine of the game's final 12 points to end the Lancers' comeback.
Glover-Toscano finished with a game-high 22 points for Saint Joseph's, while Khaafiq Myers and BJ Ranson finished with 17 points apiece.
Williams and Billups connected on 3-pointers in the opening 1:09 to stake Longwood to a 6-2 lead. The majority of the first half was back and forth, before Saint Joseph's outscored the Lancers, 15-4, over the final 6:30 to stretch its lead to 40-28 at the break.
Longwood hit 11 3-pointers for the second-straight game but finished shooting just 37.1% for the game. The Lancers connected at a 48.5% clip in the second half as it mounted the rally. Saint Joseph's finished the contest at 44.4% from the floor.
Longwood returns to the friendly confines of the Joan Perry Brock Center for Homecoming and Alumni Weekend. The Lancers welcome perennial MEAC contender North Carolina Central on Saturday at 3 p.m.
