Photo courtesy of gobonnies.com
BY: WILL NUNN; CO-EDITOR-IN-CHIEF, SPORTS EDITOR
The St. Bonaventure University men’s basketball team defeated Youngstown State University in thrilling fashion Saturday 84-80 to remain undefeated on the season.
It was a balanced scoring effort for the Bonnies (4-0), who were led by 18 points from senior guard Cayden Charles. Junior guard Darryl Simmons II and redshirt senior guard Amar’e Marshall each scored 17 points, and senior forward Frank Mitchell added 16 points and seven rebounds.
Youngstown State (2-2) was led by redshirt junior forward Rich Rolf’s 14 points and five rebounds. Sixth year forward Vlad Salaridze and senior forward Cris Carroll each added 13 points for the Penguins.
Youngstown State came into the game among the nation’s elite volume-wise from beyond the arc, and quickly made known to the Reilly Center crowd why that is. The Penguins attempted 17 threes in the first half, making seven. Over half of the Penguins shot attempts on the season have come from three-point range. The Penguins went 10-of-28 from three on the game.
The Bonnies carried a 36-33 lead into the halftime break after trailing for much of the first half. Charles led the way with 11 first-half points to go along with three rebounds and two steals.
Trailing 66-65 with eight minutes to play, the Bonnies regained the lead after a steal by redshirt junior guard Dasonte Bowen led to a Marshall dunk. After a defensive stop, Simmons nailed a transition three to put the Bonnies up by four, causing Penguins Head Coach Ethan Faulkner to call a timeout, and sending the Reilly Center crowd into a frenzy.
After a pair of Salaridze free throws tied the game at 80 with 42 seconds remaining, the Bonnies found late-game heroics from Simmons for the second time this season. Simmons drilled an elbow jumper to put the Bonnies ahead. Carroll airballed what would have been a go-ahead three for the Penguins, and a pair of free throws by Charles put the game on ice, sealing the win for the Bonnies.
The Bonnies wrap up their homestand Thursday when they host Robert Morris University in the Reilly Center at 6 p.m. The game will be streamed live on ESPN+ and the YES Network and will be broadcast on the Bonnies Online Network.
