By A&E Editor Alex Kerravala
This week was a bit up and down for the Corsairs Basketball teams, as men’s Basketball held an impressive 4-game winning streak, while women’s basketball unfortunately suffered a crushing loss in double overtime, ending their 9-game winning streak.
UMass Dartmouth hosted Rhode Island College on Wednesday, February 6th, where the men’s and women’s teams were both able to come away with a victory.
The men’s team played a very back-and-forth half against Rhode Island College, ending the half tied 38-38. However, come the second half, the Corsairs were able to consistently hold a lead after intermission, and closed it out with an impressive 15 point lead.
Senior Arinze Obiora of Hyde Park Massachusetts led the game in both total points and rebounds, giving him his 10th double-double of the season.
Another notable performance came from first year, Marcus Azor of Brockton Massachusetts, who lead the game in assists with 7 and was able to contribute 20 points to UMass Dartmouth’s win.
The women’s team played similarly well, with a solid lead of 8 points by the end of the first half, and is able to hold that lead till the very end, beating Rhode Island College 77-65.
Most notable from this game was that junior Ashley Brown from Fairhaven Massachusetts had a career best game with 26 total points as well as a new personal best of five three pointers. This gave the Corsairs their 19th win of the season, and continued their win streak to nine games total.
Unfortunately, the women’s team was not able to keep the streak going, and lost an incredibly close game in double overtime against Plymouth State. After an evenly matched and hard fought game with 15 total ties and 23 different lead changes, the women’s basketball team was able to stay afloat in the first overtime, only to lose in the last six seconds of the second overtime to Plymouth State 87-89.
Despite the loss, the Corsairs played an undeniably exceptional game, with junior Kayla McMahon and senior Nakira Examond leading with 20 points each. Examond also lead the game in rebounds with 14, and senior Danyel Gonzalez leading in assists with five.
Thankfully, the men’s game had better results. Despite losing the first half by seven points, UMass Dartmouth played an incredible second half, scoring 55 points against Plymouth State’s 41, ending the game 88-81 with a win and continuing the men’s four-game win streak.
Notable performances include sophomore Jake Ashworth with 20 points, Obiora once again leading the team in rebounds with nine, and first year Sean Leahy, who led in assists with five.
Overall, both teams are doing well this season, with the men’s team going 17-6 and the women’s team doing even better, going 19-4.
While the end to the nine game win streak is heartbreaking for the women’s team, I am sure they are eager overcome the loss.
Both teams play Wednesday, February 13th, against UMass Boston, and Saturday February 16th, against Castleton University.
Hopefully, they will be able to overcome their streak ending, and the men’s team will be able to continue theirs.