Manhattan Advances To Semis With 72-58 Win Over Peacocks
MAAC Sports
SPRINGFIELD, Mass. – Rhamel Brown scored 18 points and grabbed 10 rebounds, and Michael Alvarado added 17 points, to lead second-seeded Manhattan to a 72-58 victory over seventh-seeded Saint Peter’s in the quarterfinals of the 2014 Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference Men’s Basketball Championship at the MassMutual Center.
With the win, the Jaspers (23-7) advance to Sunday’s semifinal round and will play No. 3 seed Quinnipiac. The Bobcats moved on with an 89-80 victory over Niagara in the final quarterfinal round game of the day.
Alvarado broke a 41-41 tie with a pair of free throws with 14:44 left in the second half to spark a 15-8 run by the Jaspers, who held a 58-49 lead at the 6:52 mark. A three-pointer by the Peacocks’ Chris Burke at 6:38 cut the lead to six points, 58-52, but Manhattan outscored Saint Peter’s 14-6 down the stretch to secure the victory.
Manhattan held a 32-31 lead at halftime in a closely contested first 20 minutes that featured six lead changes and six ties.
Junior Marvin Dominique led Saint Peter’s (14-17) with 14 points and eight rebounds, while Chris Burke scored 12 points, and Desi Washington added 10 points.
Brown was dominant on the inside, and was good on 7-of-11 shots from the floor. Alvarado was good on 13-of-16 from the free throw line.