Eagle Times Staff
FAIRFIELD, CT — The Dartmouth men’s basketball team opened a 26-20 lead late in the first half, but Sacred Heart ended the half on a 7-2 run and carried that momentum into the second, defeating the Big Green, 67-57 on Thursday, Dec. 21. The game tipped off at 11:30 a.m. on Sacred Heart’s Education Day, with a full house of 2,400 fans in attendance. Senior Dusan Neskovic led the offense with 19 points while sophomore Brandon Mitchell-Day posted 14 points and 6 rebounds. The two also combined to draw 13 of the Pioneers’ 18 fouls for the game.
With the loss, Dartmouth falls to 4-8. Preseason NEC Favorite Sacred Heart improves to 5-9.
“We still have to put 40 minutes together,” said Dartmouth Head Coach David McLaughlin. “We’ve been a little injury-plagued lately, so when you transition guys back, guys have to get their feet wet. Part of our process is to transition those guys back in.
“In the second half, we missed some shots and Sacred Heart responded and really started attacking the paint on us and they made some tough shots,” McLaughlin continued. “We missed some looks in the paint, we missed some open threes, and Sacred Heart countered on those. When we tried to counter with a few things, I thought the guys played hard and tried to execute. I just thought we got outplayed in the second half overall.”
The Big Green grabbed a season-high 17 offensive rebounds, most since last Nov. 25, against Incarnate Word, but 16 turnovers hurt along with 11 missed free throws (on 24 attempts). Sacred Heart came into the game forcing exactly 16 turnovers per game on average through its first 13 games.
Neskovic finished 5-of-14 from the field and 2-of-7 from three but knocked down 7-of-9 from the free throw line. Mitchell-Day was 5-of-7 from the floor while adding 6 rebounds, 2 assists, 2 steals and 2 blocks. Both produced in limited minutes after first returning from injury on Monday night. On Thursday, Neskovic played 22 with Mitchell-Day playing 24.
Junior Ryan Cornish added 9 points and 6 rebounds, as well. Joey Reilly led Sacred Heart with 19 points, knocking down 3-of-4 from 3-point range.
The Big Green got off to a 6-3 lead at the first media timeout after a Connor Christensen second-chance layup. Over the next several minutes, neither team led by more than 2 points. A Jackson Munro 3-pointer put Dartmouth ahead, 14-13 with 8:32 on the clock and within two minutes, the Big Green lead swelled to 20-15 following four straight Neskovic points (via a 3-pointer and free throw).
Dartmouth’s lead twice reached 6, the second time after a Cornish floater, which made the score 26-20 with 3:16 left in the first. Sacred Heart responded with a 7-0 run, capped off by a Mike Sixsmith 3-pointer, but another Cornish floater in the final minute gave the Big Green a 28-27 halftime lead.
Early in the second half, Dartmouth increased its lead back to four on multiple occasions, the third following an emphatic Neskovic drive and one-handed dunk after two Robert McRae III offensive rebounds. That gave the Big Green a 37-33 advantage with 14:31 left in the second half.
However, Sacred Heart answered in a big way, posting a 12-0 run to take a 45-37 advantage with 9:41 on the clock.
Four straight free throws, from Neskovic and Mitchell-Day, snapped a more than 4-minute scoreless drought and cut Dartmouth’s deficit in half to 45-31. But the Pioneers gradually increased their lead, eventually reaching 56-46 after a Kyle McGee 3-pointer with 3:46 on the clock. The Big Green couldn’t get any closer than seven the rest of the way.
For the game, Dartmouth shot 37.7 percent from the floor (20-of-53) and 18.2 percent from 3-point range (4-of-22). Sacred Heart finished at 44.1 percent (26-of-59) and 46.2 percent from behind the arc (6-of-13). The Big Green held a 44-29 edge in rebounds.
“We need to have a full group out there; we didn’t have Jayden today,” said McLaughlin. “But it was good for [Dusan and Brandon] to get their feet wet and get back in the flow of things. Our job right now as a staff, and me as the coach, is take these days we have over break and really figure out ways to really put these guys in the best positions moving forward.”
After a break for the holiday, Dartmouth returns to action next Saturday, Dec. 30, at Vanderbilt. It will be the Big Green’s nonleague finale before their Ivy League opener at Penn on Saturday, Jan. 6.
“I want the guys to have a great break and enjoy time with their families,” McLaughlin continued. “We have a couple guys who aren’t able to go home, so hopefully they can enjoy time with some of their teammates and be ready to go when we get back.”
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