And the Tourney Continues...

Last night was an exciting night on the UNE campus, as both the Men and Women's basketball teams pulled through with a win on the home court. These wins are the first The Commonwealth Coast Conference Tournament victories for the Men and Women since the 2003-2004 season, and marks the first ever home victory in the TCCC Tourney for the Men. The Men's team will play the fourth seeded Salve Regina at home on Thursday, while the Women's team will have to travel to second seeded, and bitter rival, Endicott on Thursday.
Defense was the story in the Women's game last night, as the Nor'easters caused the Golden Bears to turn the ball over 21 times. The stingy defense was able to cover up some a poor shooting performance, as the victors only shot 35% from the floor. Despite the number of shots that they did not connect on, the Nor'easters still put up 79 points while all five starters posted double figures. Kelley Paradis led the way with twenty, and senior Alli "Ms. 1000" Gamache, who was held scoreless in the first half, exploded for 17 in the second frame. Senior forward Sara Pelkey posted a double-double with 13 points and 10 rebounds, which includes five offensive rebounds.
Endicott beat Regis College last night, 57-47, despite trailing by seven at the half. Endicott is the Nor'easters only blemish in conference play and ended UNE's ten-game win streak the last time they met. That game was ugly from the get-go, as the Gulls held a 41-18 lead at half, and never looked back, crushing the Nor'easters 85-65. UNE will have to continue the tough defense they played last night, but they will have to connect more from the floor, especially from beyond the arc if they expect to upset Endicott.
The first half of the Men's game left the fans on the edge of their seat as the teams constantly exchanged leads. The Nor'easters led by seven at the half after capitalizing on an alley-oop lay-up to Ryan Knotek with 0.6 seconds left. UNE then went on a 17-4 run early in the second half to claim the lead for good. UNE played one of the best "team" games they have all season long. With Juice Simpson getting into foul trouble in the first half (a few questionable calls might I add), Marchale Robinson and Marcus Winn filled in beautifully. The Nor'easters bench outscored the Golden Bears' 22-2 for the game, with Winn, Robinson, and Knotek each had six. Knotek played exceptional defense down low, banging with the physical WNEC forwards, and pulled down four rebounds. Steve Belmonte, Quentin Thompson, Anthony Johnson, and Johnnie Jefferson were all in double-figures for the Blue and White, and the team shot an outstanding 50% in the second half.
The Nor'easters will host Salve Regina on Thursday night. SRU nearly blew an 18 point halftime lead, as Nichols came storming back twice and forced double overtime to finally decide a winner. The Nor'easters played SRU in mid-January and posted a ten point victory, 83-73. Jefferson and Thompson paired up for 49 points and 16 boards in that game, while Belmonte and Juice were both in double-figures to lead the scoring charge for the Nor'easters. UNE will try to take advantage of the tired legs of the Seahawks, as they had to play a 50-minute game on Tuesday. The Men's game will start at 7 o'clock on Thursday because the Women's team will be at Endicott.