No. 6 Knights Quash Quincy 118-75!

02.25.19

Warwick, R.I. – February 25, 2019: The CCRI Knights men's basketball team hosted the Quincy College Granite Saturday afternoon. Quincy stayed close during the first half but could simply not withstand the Knights' offense and in the end CCRI were victorious 118-75. The win improves CCRI's season record to 27-3 overall and 24-4 in Region XXI play. CCRI go into the playoffs with a 17-game winning streak and finish undefeated at home, 15-0. The evening was also CCRI's sophomore day as they recognized their six sophomores; JC Santos (East Providence, RI), Peter Wilson (Providence, RI), Dave Cabeceiras (Warwick, RI), Oscar Iteji (Schenectady, NY), Kyle Murphy (West Warwick, RI) and Jacob Gillis (Jamestown, RI).

CCRI came into this final regular season game knowing a win would go a long way in securing the No. 1 seed for the Region XXI tournament. Early on, it appeared that there was definitely a battle at hand. Two minutes in, the game was tied at six points apiece. With 12:29 left in the first, the Knights had taken a small 22-19 lead over the Granite. The Quincy offense was never more than a step behind, making crucial shots to stay in the game. Darrius Hyppolite led all scorers with 26 points and helped keep Quincy within striking distance as the Granite trailed the Knights 39-32 with 6:02 left in the half. Hyppolite is the NJCAA's top 3-point shooter making 119 so far this season at an impressive 56.1% rate. The high intensity of CCRI's defense began to take its toll as the lead grew to 16 points, 54-38 at halftime.

The second half started the way the first half ended with CCRI dominating on both sides of the ball. Defensively CCRI continued to push the ball carriers into dangerous situations to force turnovers. As a team, CCRI snatched 12 steals and forced 14 turnovers. Offensively, the Knights began to show their range as they knocked down 15 team three-pointers. This along with a total of 30 assists helped stretch the lead further and further. In the end the score gap grew to over 40 points as the Knights won the game 118-75.

The Knights were led by sophomore Jake Gillis was extremely efficient on the nights, shooting 9-10 from the floor and 5-5 from the line in route to a career-high 24 points, seven rebounds, four steals, three assists and one block. Sophomore co-captain JC Santos registered 22 points with nine assists, eight rebounds and two steals. Sophomore co-captain Dave Cabeceiras shot 8-10 from the floor, 3-5 from beyond the arc, scoring a career-high 19 points along with six rebounds, three assists and three steals. Sophomore co-captain Peter Wilson tallied 17 points, seven assists, six rebounds and two steals. Freshman Dylan Durante (Johnston, RI) came off the bench, shooting 4-6 from three-point territory and scoring 16 points with three rebounds and one assist. Sophomore Oscar Iteji recorded his sixth double-double of the season, ripping down 13 rebounds with 12 points, a career-high six blocks, three assists and 1 steal. Iteji ends the regular season averaging 3.0 blocks per game, earning No. 5 in the nation in that statistic while a season tally of 84 blocks pushes him up to No. 2 in the nation in total blocks.

Head Coach Rick Harris commented: "What a fitting way to end our regular season today here at the Vincent A. Cullen Field House. It was a large and great crowd here to support our sophomores and the entire team on having such a fantastic regular season. I am amazed with what this team has accomplished led by one of the best backcourts CCRI has ever put on the court. JC Santos and Peter Wilson have made the players job and the coaches so easy. This team though loves to play. They come to practice each day and have bought into all of my demands which relate to hard work, one day at a time and team play. Today was just an example of all of those things coming together. We overwhelmed a very good offensive team with intense strategic defense and team play. I am very proud of this entire group. We will now begin to prepare for next weekend's Regional Tournament. As I told the guys it is a new season where everyone starts off 0-0. On behalf of our entire team we thank you all for your well wishes and support all season long."

The CCRI Knights men's basketball team will next be in action as they head into the Region XXI tournament CCRI (27-3) will be the No. 1 seed, Bristol CC (26-3) will be No. 2 seed, Bunker Hill CC (24-4) will be No. 3 seed, Gateway CC (18-10) will be No. 4 seed, Springfield Tech (17-11) will be No. 5 seed and Massasoit CC (13-13) will be No. 6 seed.

-Tournament semifinals and finals will be held at Bunker Hill Community College in Boston.

-Play in games will be on Wednesday 2/27: No. 4 Gateway vs No. 5 STCC at Gateway and No, 3 Bunker Hill vs No. 3 Massasoit at Bunker Hill.

-Saturday March 2nd 4pm No. 1 seed CCRI vs 4/5 winner and 6pm No. 2 seed Bristol vs 3/6 winner at Bunker Hill CC.

-The winners of the 4p and 6p games will meet in Region XXI Championship game Sunday 3/3/19 at 2pm at Bunker Hill CC.

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The Community College of Rhode Island, New England's largest comprehensive community college, enrolls nearly 15,000 students in credit courses and thousands more in non-credit and job training classes. Its athletic program boasts 12 varsity programs and an academic support program for all student-athletes.