CALDWELL UPENDS LIGHTNING, 74-65 IN CACC TOURNEY
2-27-07
box score
 WILMINGTON,
Del. - Junior guard Michael Wise (Whitesboro, NJ/Middletownship),
left,
scored a career-high 17 points as the Caldwell College men's basketball team
defeated Goldey-Beacom College, 74-65 in the first round of the Central
Atlantic Collegiate Conference Tournament in Wilmington, Del. The
fifth-seeded Cougars (17-11) advance to the semifinals to play top-seed
Philadelphia University, who held off Dominican College 71-67. The
fourth-seeded Lightning end its season with a record of 14-13.
The Cougars will face Philadelphia on Friday, Mar. 2 at 7:30 p.m. at
Dominican College’s Hennessy Center in Orangeburg, N.Y.
Caldwell built an early 14-9 lead in the game’s first six minutes
before Goldey-Beacom utilized two three-pointers from Adrian Miles
and another from DJ Stanberry to take a 26-21 advantage with seven
minutes to go in the half. The Cougars answered with a three by
junior guard Hans Stelzer (Selden, NY/Our Savior) that
ignited a 12-2 run to close out the half. Sophomore guard Carl
Augustin (Stony Point, NY/Don Bosco Prep) had four points and
Wise buried a three-pointer of his own to cap the run and send
Caldwell into the break with a 36-28 lead.
 Momentum
stayed on the Cougars’ side of the court into the second half. Four
points by junior forward B.J. Suchy (Ronkonkoma, NY/Our
Savior) and three from Wise helped Caldwell outscore the Lightning
11-4 over the first 6:49 of the second period to take a 47-32 lead.
The lead would grow to as many as 18 when senior guard Jean
Georges (Vauxhal, NJ/Spotswood) converted a conventional
three-point play that made the score 58-40 with just under nine
minutes to play. But the Lightning, who were playing their first
postseason game at home, would not concede, scoring the next 10
points to cut the deficit to 58-50 with 6:32 on the clock.
After Caldwell extended the lead to 63-52, five straight points,
including four from Stanberry, brought the Lightning to within six,
63-57 with four minutes remaining. At that point the Cougar defense
tightened, allowing just one field goal over the next 2:45 that saw
Caldwell restore its lead to 70-59 with 1:27 left. Three-pointers by
Miroslaw Babiarz and Jasen Maicey had Goldey-Beacom within six again
with less than a minute to play, but they would get no closer, as
Caldwell advanced to the semifinals for the second time in three
years.
The Cougars shot 53.3 percent from the field, including 63.6 percent
(7-of-11) from three-point range, to overcome 25 turnovers and poor
free throw shooting (19-of-33). Georges led Caldwell with 18 points
to go with seven boards and three steals, with Augustin (right)
scoring a career-best 13 points and Stelzer finishing with 10.
Wise’s 17 point-performance surpasses his previous career-best of 15
points set during his sophomore year against Bloomfield College on
Dec. 1, 2005. Stanberry led all scorers with 21 points for the
Lightning.
Caldwell looks to advance to the CACC Tournament finals when the
Cougars face top-seeded Philadelphia University in the semifinals.
Game time is set for 7:30 p.m. at Dominican College. Both semifinal
games and Saturday’s final will be broadcast on the internet via the
CACC website at www.caccathletics.org.
2007 CACC Men's Basketball Tournament
First Round - Tuesday, Feb. 27
No. 1 Philadelphia 71, No. 8 Dominican 67
No. 2 Post 78, No. 7 Felician 71
No. 6 USP 55, No. 3 Holy Family 50
No. 5 Caldwell 74, No. 4 Goldey-Beacom 65
Semifinals - Friday, Mar. 2, at Dominican College
No. 2 Post vs. No. 6 USP, 5:30 p.m.
No. 1 Philadelphia vs. No. 5 Caldwell, 7:30 p.m.
Championship - Saturday, Mar. 3, at Dominican College
Semifinal Winners at 4:00 p.m.
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