January 26, 2021 –
When playing the Richmond Spiders they have different weapons that puts pressure on the defense. The Hawks knew they could not stop everything. So, undermanned Saint Joe’s had to take advantage of their chances on offense. Hawks turnovers, especially in the opening half, proved costly in a 79 – 56 defeat at the Hagan Arena.
“It was the turnovers,” said Saint Joseph’s Coach Billy Lange. “It was the chinning of the basketball when you got the ball in the paint. It’s travelling. It’s catching the ball with two hands. It’s coming to a pivot and delivering a good pass. It’s all of those things. Those turnovers in that stretch was the difference in the game.”
SJU committed 18 turnovers that UR converted into a 22 – 9 advantage in points off turnovers. In the first half SJU had 11 of those miscues. The shooting percentage was good (11 of 24 for 46% and 5 made three-pointers), but the Hawks needed chances at the basket and the turnovers took those chances away.
“I thought our offense in the first half put pressure on us and we couldn’t score,” Lange said. “The turnovers, that’s the game.”
For the game Richmond made over half of their shots (31 of 61) while limiting Saint Joseph’s to 38% (19 of 50). The Spiders had 11 more attempts at the basket and made 12 more baskets. A tough combination to overcome, and 18 miscues do not aid the cause.
“You have to play as fundamental and detailed as you possible can or you fall to the mistakes capitalized on by a good basketball team.”
Jordan Hall led Saint Joe’s in scoring getting 17 points. He made 6 of 13 field goal attempts and sank 3 three-pointers. The only other SJU player to break double digits was Taylor Funk who had 10 points.
Tyler Burton scored a career-high 25 points for the Spiders making 10 of 13 from the field and 3 of 6 from beyond the arc. Blake Francis had 18 points in the win.
Saint Joseph’s (1 – 13, 0 – 7) seeks their first conference win of the season on Saturday when they travel to Pittsburgh for a game against Duquesne.
Written By: Glenn Papazian
Contact: Glenn@PhillyCollegeSports.com
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