Harden’s 18th double-double leads CCRI past Seawolves

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The CCRI Lady Knights basketball team hosted the Seawolves of Southern Maine Community College from Portland, Maine on Sunday at the Vincent A. Cullen Fieldhouse. The Lady Knights defeated the Seawolves 63-44. With the victory, the Lady Knights move above .500 with a 12-11 record.

The Lady Knights were out to exact some revenge on the Seawolves, who had beaten them 71-61 back in December.

The Lady Knights played very well and were able to keep the Seawolves under control for most of the game. CCRI took a 23-10 lead after the first quarter led by Kennethah Harden (Roosevelt, N.Y.) who scored eight points. CCRI had a very good second quarter, allowing just seven points to SMCC to extend its lead to 19 points with the score 36-17. 

Once again, SMCC came out strong in the third quarter to score 19 points, while CCRI had 16 to maintain a 16-point lead going into the final frame. In that final quarter, the Lady Knights held off a late charge by SMCC to win by the final count of 63-44.

The Lady Knights were led by Harden, who paced CCRI with her 18th double-double in 23 games with 14 points and 13 rebounds while adding three assists, a steal and a blocked shot. Harden’s numbers across the board are becoming exemplary as she is on pace to shatter the CCRI single-season rebounding record of 343 rebounds set by Nyjah Porcher in 2013. Harden is ranked second by the NJCAA (D-II) in the nation in total rebounds with 274. She is also ranked first in offensive rebounds with 110 and 11th with 12.5 rebounds per game. Also having a very good game for CCRI was Ashley Correa (Providence, R.I.) with 13 points and two steals and Alexis Antonacci (Plainview, N.Y.) with nine points, seven steals and four assists. Also playing well was Co-Captain Lyric Artis (Albany, N.Y.) with eight points, three assists, three rebounds and a blocked shot, Mackenzie Brayman (North Stonington, Conn.) with nine points and Co-Captain Haley Beausoleil (Plainfield, Conn.) with six points, nine rebounds and five assists.

The next game for the Lady Knights will be Thursday when they travel to Newport to play the Naval Midshipwomen Candidates from the Naval Academy Preparatory School at 4 p.m.

Knights fall to Seawolves

The CCRI Knights basketball team traveled to wintry South Portland, Maine on Saturday to face off against Southern Maine Community College. The Knights failed to make the long trip worthwhile as they fell to the Seawolves by the score of 84-76. The loss puts the Knights’ record at 12-8 on the season.

The Knights started off well as they took a 16-8 lead just eight minutes into the action. The Knights then went ice cold from the field as they struggled to hit shots and quickly lost their lead. After their early lead, the Knights were outscored by the Seawolves 23-8 in the final 12 minutes of the half to head into the break down seven, 31-24.

Head Coach Rick Harris said this at halftime: “We were as cold as the temperature outside, and for that, we found ourselves stuck in a snowbank at halftime.”  

The second half started just as the first half had as the Knights came out aggressive and quickly flipped the score around. The Knights’ aggressive defense in the 1-3-1 trap allowed them to create turnovers and get scores, eventually leading to a 57-47 lead. Once again though, déjà vu happened as the Seawolves got hot and the Knights did not.

Over the last 12 minutes, the home team went on an impressive 37-23 run that the Knights could not recover from this time. The Knights were unable to make a final push and dropped the game 84-76.

Adrian La Fleur (Sydney, Australia) had a big game for the Knights as he posted an impressive double-double with 17 points and 10 assists while adding six rebounds. La Fleur also connected on four 3-pointers while committing zero turnovers. Tri-Captain Edvaldo Ferreira (Cape Verde) had another big game for the Knights also as he dropped 19 on an efficient 8-of-11 from the field while grabbing eight rebounds and blocking nine shots.

Freshman Elijah Vazquez (Woonsocket, R.I.) netted 15 points as he knocked down five 3-pointers. Tri-Captains Jessy Taveras (Cranston, R.I.) and Joe Santiago (Willimantic, Conn.) both scored eight points for the Knights while Taveras added five assists.

Coach Harris added this after the game: “It was a step back for our team today after winning four of our last five. Southern Maine won all the vital areas today. They beat us on the boards, out-rebounding us 40-28 and they also out executed us by getting better high percentage shots in crunch time. We will get some needed rest over the next couple of days and then begin preparing for a tough Northern Essex squad next Thursday night.” 

The Knights host the Knights of Northern Essex CC from Haverhill, Mass. Thursday at 6 p.m. for a Region XXI non-league game at the Vincent A. Cullen Fieldhouse in Warwick.

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