NEWARK, Del. – After almost staging a comeback in the second half, the Saint Peter's men's basketball team (1-3) ultimately fell to Delaware (1-3) on the road at Bob Carpenter Center on Tuesday. The Peacocks outscored the Blue Hens by twelve points over the final 20 minutes, but it wasn't enough as Delaware won, 81-70.
The Peacocks were forced to dig out of an early hole as the Blue Hens started the game on a 14-0 run. SPU didn't cut into the deficit until after halftime when
Brent Bland once again caught fire from 3-point range. He finished the game with 21 points, hitting all six of his 3-pointers in the second half.
Despite the late push, the Peacocks were unable to stack enough stops defensively to hang with the Blue Hens. Delaware was hot from start to finish, collectively shooting 53.8 percent (28-for-52) from the field and 52.4 percent (11-for-21) from 3-point range. The Blue Hens also limited Saint Peter's trips to the free throw line as the Peacocks shot just six free throws all night.
For SPU,
Bryce Eaton played well off the bench, finishing with 13 points, three rebounds and two assists.
TJ Robinson found his rhythm later in the game, recording 11 points, six boards and eight assists.
Bol Agu also had a solid performance in limited minutes on the floor.
HOW IT HAPPENED
FIRST HALF: Saint Peter's opened the game facing a 14-0 Delaware scoring run over the first few minutes. It took until the 14-minute mark for the Peacocks to get on the board after Eaton hit a floater, making it 2-14. As the half progressed, the Blue Hens continued to knock down 3-pointers to take a commanding 22-7 advantage.
Saint Peter's struggled to slow down Delaware's offense as the Blue Hens made six straight field goals. They built a 32-12 lead while shooting 63.2 percent from the field and 66.7 percent from behind the arc. The Peacocks trailed the Blue Hens 26-49 at halftime.
SECOND HALF: After starting the game 0-for-3 from 3-point range, Bland caught fire from long range in the second half to get Saint Peter's back in it. He hit five 3s through the first six-and-a-half minutes as the Peacocks trailed 46-56. He hit another shot from downtown with 10:45 to go in regulation, cutting Saint Peter's deficit to nine at the media timeout.
Shortly after, back-to-back 3s from Robinson and
Adetokunbo Bakare made it just a five-point game, 61-66. Two layups by the Blue Hens and a series of missed shots by Saint Peter's shifted the momentum back in Delaware's favor. The Blue Hens managed to hit their free throws down the stretch to keep the Peacocks out of reach.
UP NEXT
The Peacocks return to Jersey City for their next four games, including two in-conference matchups. Saint Peter's plays UMass Lowell on Saturday, Nov. 22, at 2 p.m. ET.
NOTES
Saint Peter's moves to 1-2 all-time vs. Delaware...Bland has scored 20+ points and made 5+ 3-pointers in each of the last three games…Robinson set new season-highs in rebounds (six) and assists (eight)…the Peacocks outscored the Blue Hens 44-to-32 in the second half.
