City of Basketball Love

Daniel Hughes (@dan1el_sun)
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Everyone in the Daskalakis Athletic Center watched as the ball took a high bounce off the rim, then after what seemed like an eternity of hanging in the air, dropped in the net.

For the Saint Joseph’s fans in the DAC, there was a quick sigh of relief, followed by loud cheering. For Drexel supporters, there was more of a sinking feeling, then nervous clutching of hair with hands.

“Shooter’s touch,” Shavar Newkirk said of his game-winning free throw on Sunday, in a 72-71 win that helped St. Joe’s (4-4) top Drexel (4-5) and break a four-game losing streak.

Although Newkirk and his fellow point guard, sophomore tri-captain Lamarr Kimble, did most of the scoring work, St. Joe’s coach Phil Martelli credits the win to the other two captains, seniors Javon Baumann and Brendan Casper.

When the Hawks needed experience, the 6-foot-8 Baumann and the 6-foot-6 Casper delivered.

“(They) were the difference in the game, they stood up tall defensively,” Martelli said. “The young players’ concentration and execution today was not what we’re going to need, so the older guys, Shavar and Javon and Brendan helped us pull through to the end.”

Casper, a Methacton product, scored a career-high 10 points against the Dragons, including a run of six unanswered in the first half. Drexel had gotten off to a commanding lead after Kurk Lee Jr. and Sammy Mojica sank two 3-point shots each within the first four minutes, but it was Casper that helped wither away the Dragons’ advantage.

The Hawks finally tied it at 52-52 with 10 minutes to go in the second half on a layup by none other than Casper.

He fouled out with three and a half minutes left in the game, but by then the stage had already been set for Newkirk and Baumann to finish out with a win.

Newkirk, who leads St. Joe’s in scoring with 20.3 points per game, made off with 27 points, seven rebounds and four assists. He also scored the last 11 points of the game for the Hawks. Even he credited his offensive inspiration to Casper.

“I saw that we needed a spark,” Newkirk said. “Brendan Casper did a good job doing that in the first half, and I felt as a leader of the team, I could provide that [in the second half].”

The 6-foot junior point guard from New York City made a layup and was fouled on the Hawks’ last offensive possession of the game.

Newkirk managed to exploit the zone that the Dragons had been using for the majority of the game.

“They were playing (freshman guard) Charlie (Brown) for the three ball,” Newkirk said. “That allowed me to get to the lane easy.”

After stepping up to the line, Newkirk paused. His last free throw bounced high off the back iron, then dropped right into the basket, giving the Dragons only 10.7 seconds left to score.

On the very next possession, St. Joe’s came up with two huge blocks by Baumann and freshman forward Nick Robinson to seal the game for the Hawks.

Baumann, who is originally from Germany, had a career high in rebounding, with nine boards. He also finished with three points and two blocks.

All throughout the game, St. Joe’s had trouble stopping Lee and Drexel’s star senior big man, Rodney Williams. Williams ended up with a career high 29 points, while the 5-10 freshman Lee added 16.

Baumann, Casper and redshirt sophomore Markell Lodge took turns trying to contain Williams. Newkirk was for the most part tasked with guarding Lee.

“The game plan was to keep him out of the lane,” Newkirk said. “He’s a good player, he’s very crafty and fast, but I believe I did a good job handling him.”

The Hawks will be at Princeton on December 14 for their next game and will then make a long trek out to Normal, Ill. for their matchup with Illinois State. They do not return to Hagan Arena until Dec. 22.

Drexel’s next contest will come next Friday against Rider in Lawrenceville, NJ at 7:00 PM.

Right now, St. Joe’s will keep looking for contributions from players other than Newkirk and Kimble as their young team continues to grow.

“We need balance, ” Martelli said. “We can’t ride them, and they have to be part of a picture that right now is incomplete.”