Men’s Basketball Falls to Saint Joseph (Conn.) in GNAC Quarterfinals

WEST HARTFORD, Conn. — The Rivier men's basketball team saw its season come to an end Tuesday night, falling 83-63 to Saint Joseph (Conn.) in the GNAC Quarterfinals at James A. Calhoun Gymnasium.

With the loss, the Raiders wrapped up the season at 14-13 (7-7 GNAC), while the Blue Jays improved to 20-7 (12-2 GNAC) and advanced to the GNAC Semifinals against No. 2 Lasell on Thursday, Feb. 27.

Rivier opened strong with a 7-1 lead at the first media timeout, fueled by two early baskets from senior Cheikh Gueye. Saint Joseph responded with a 10-0 run to take an 11-7 lead at the 13:07 mark. After a jumper from graduate student Kyler Bosse, the Blue Jays extended their advantage with a 12-3 surge, making it 23-12 with 9:47 left in the first half.

The Raiders fought back as senior Odarius Cade and first-year Matt Youngquist converted back-to-back layups, trimming the deficit to 23-16. Consecutive three-pointers from junior Matt Constant brought Rivier within six at 28-22 but Saint Joseph closed the half strong to take a 44-34 lead into the break.

Constant opened the second half with his fourth three-pointer, and Gueye followed with a fastbreak layup to cut the deficit to 44-39 at the 17-minute mark. The Blue Jays countered with a 12-4 run over the next seven minutes to regain control at 56-43. Saint Joseph continued to build its lead down the stretch, sealing the 83-63 victory.

Constant led Rivier with 21 points on 7-of-13 (53.8%) shooting, including 5-of-10 (50%) from beyond the arc, while adding three rebounds. Gueye contributed 13 points on 6-of-11 (54.5%) shooting and grabbed a team-high seven rebounds. Bosse also added 13 points with three rebounds.