NORTH ANDOVER, Mass. – The Saint Peter's men's basketball team's four-game winning streak came to an end on Saturday after falling to Merrimack by a final score of 59-67 at Lawler Arena. The Peacocks showed fight and made it close towards the end of the game, but their comeback bid ultimately came up short.
The Peacocks (11-7, 8-2 MAAC) found themselves having to dig out of a deep hole as the Warriors (13-9, 9-2 MAAC) built a 17-point lead at halftime. Despite committing 10 turnovers in the first half, Saint Peter's managed to clean things up and claw back into the game.
Lucas Scroggins led the charge, recording his second double-double performance of the season. He finished with 12 points and was a monster on the glass with 14 rebounds, 12 of which were offensive boards.
Eric Morgan Jr. scored a team-high 14 points coming off the bench for the Peacocks.
Saint Peter's absolutely dominated the boards today, pulling in 49 rebounds compared to Merrimack's 26. The Peacocks had a whopping 28 offensive rebounds, which led to 22 second-chance points, but it still wasn't enough as they fell by eight.
NOTES
Saint Peter's is now 3-2 all-time against the Warriors and 0-1 against them on the road…the Peacocks and Warriors split their series this year, with each home team winning their respective games…Scroggins recorded his second double-double this season…the Peacocks sit half a game behind the Warriors for first place in the MAAC.
HOW IT HAPPENED
FIRST HALF: After
Zaakir Williamson put the Peacocks on the board with an AND-1 layup, the Warriors scored nine unanswered points go up 13-3 over Saint Peter's. The Peacocks responded with a 9-2 scoring run to get back in the game. The Warriors then took a double-digit lead again with under six minutes to go after hitting a 3-pointer. The Merrimack defense continued to swarm SPU for the rest of the half, going into the break with eight steals and four blocks. The Peacocks trailed 16-33 at halftime.
SECOND HALF: The first five minutes of the second half went back-and-forth as Merrimack held onto its large lead at 40-25. Two dunks by Scroggins brought life back to the Peacocks as they started to make a run. The dunks helped ignite an 11-3 scoring run and cut Saint Peter's deficit down to eight points approaching the 11-minute mark. Free throws and a pair of 3-pointers by the Warriors slowed down SPU's momentum, but the Peacocks still wouldn't go away, trailing 52-61 with 2:09 to go. An AND-1 transition layup by
Brent Bland cut it to a 55-61 game, but Saint Peter's couldn't quite complete the comeback, falling 59-67.
UP NEXT
The Peacocks head back to Jersey City for their next MAAC matchup against Mount St. Mary's. Saint Peter's tips off with the Mountaineers on Friday, Jan. 30, at 8 p.m. ET. The game will be televised on ESPNU.
