By Evan Enden
With the win, Bridgeport is seeded second in the upcoming NYCAC tournament thanks to sweeping the season series with Queens, which started the day in second place but dropped to fourth with the loss. The Knights will face New York Tech in the NYCAC quarterfinals in a game scheduled for Wednesday in Flushing. Queens won both meetings with the Bears this year.Clyde Chapman scored the first bucket of the game, giving Queens College (19-8, 17-7) its first and only lead. Kevin Jeffreys set the tone for Bridgeport (19-8, 17-7 NYCAC), which opened the game on an 8-2 run, by scoring 18 of his game-high 25 points in the first half. “I knew this is where it was going to count,” said Jeffreys, who hit an NBA 3-pointer with 2:20 left in the first half to give Bridgeport a commanding 35-18 lead. “It's been a long ride and every game from now on is either win or go home.” Both teams combined for 23 turnovers in a sloppy first half and Queens, which had just one assist in the opening 20 minutes, trailed 41-22 at the break. Four-year starter John Sikiric struggled in the first half, shooting 2-of-7 and scoring only 4 points. But Bridgeport coach Mike Ruane knew the game wasn't over at the half.”Queens College has a great mix of guys who play with a lot of heart,” said Ruane, who thinks Queens could knock off top-seeded Adelphi, should the two teams meet in the semifinals. “They seem to be coming together at the right time.”Despite their poor shooting in the first half, Sikiric and Chapman brought the Knights back into the game. Queens opened up the second half with a 9-0 run that cut its deficit to 41-31. Sikiric, who moved past Elliot Yorke (1575) and Greg Whitehurst (1580) into fifth place on the Knights all-time scoring list with 1583, scored 15 of his 19 points and Chapman scored 17 of his 23 in the second half.”We came out and fought hard in the second half,” Queens coach Kyrk Peponakis said. “We had to climb up the hill in this one and we gave it our best effort.” Queens looked like a different team in the second half as they dished out 11 assists, and caused a total of 22 turnovers with their full-court press. With two minutes remaining the Knights got as close as six, 78-72. But with 53 seconds left on the clock, Bridgeport's Mike Rosario slammed home a dunk, which was followed by a Queens College turnover and two free throws by Bridgeport's Jeremy Benjamin. The Knights found themselves trailing 84-74 with 30 seconds left and Bridgeport never looked back. Reach intern Evan Enden by e-mail at TimesLedger@aol.com or call 718-229-0300, Ext. 130.
