Sullivan Buries New Haven
New Haven struck early Thursday night, running out to an 8-2 lead against Sullivan in the first four minutes of their conference showdown.
Sullivan wouldn’t stay down for long.
With a flurry of 3-pointers, the Eagles stormed back and never trailed again, registering a 53-46 victory.
New Haven staged a rally in the final two minutes to trim what had been a 20-point deficit to six with 45 seconds.
Sullivan (18-6) broke away with a big third quarter run. They finished with 10 3-pointers and the white hot perimeter shooting built up what as an insurmountable lead.
Jay Eichelberger’s 3-pointer followed by a three-point play with 3:51 gave the Shamrocks an 8-2 advantage.
Josh Wiese keyed a string of three straight possessions that ended with a 3-pointer for the Eagles. Austin Frye hit the first of two straight 3s when Cameron Cunningham found Wiese on the baseline, who kicked it to Frye in the corner. Frye came down 30 seconds later and knocked down another 3 that gave the Eagles an 11-8 lead.
Luke Gerlemann threw up a wild shot with 41 seconds left in the quarter. The Shamrocks missed a chance to take the lead when Wiese drew a charge with 1.2 seconds remaining.
Sullivan increased their lead in the second off 3-pointers by Landon Hoffman and Cunningham to go up 17-12. Hoffman drove to the rim and Frye pulled up for a jumper to extend the lead to 21-14.
New Haven climbed within three on two straight long jumpers by Trent Kormeier, but a scoop by Carter Adams and two free throws by Austin Lewis secured a 25-18 lead at the half.
Sullivan went on another 3-point frenzy in the third period. Hoffman led a 7-0 run with a triple, then Adams finished a fast-break. McKinney battled inside for a basket against the 6-3 Joseph Rethemeyer to give the Eagles a 32-20 lead.
Cody McKinney splashed his first 3-pointer, then Hoffman drained another off a dribble handoff by Jacob Rohrer. Austin Frye connected with 1:03 left and Hoffman hit his fourth with 10 seconds remaining to give the Eagles a 46-26 lead entering the fourth quarter.
New Haven went on an 8-0 run to start the period, cutting Sullivan’s lead to 46-34. Adams pushed it back with a 3-pointer at the 2:38 mark, which was Sullivan’s final basket of the night. Ethan Groner hit a pair of 3s, including an off-balance shot from the top of the key with 45 seconds left to make it 49-43.
McKinney and Hoffman converted a pair of free throws to push the lead back to 10 with 20 seconds to go. New Haven brought Levi Schroeder on the floor and he hit his first 3-pointer of the season right before the buzzer.