Scott's Career-Best 26 Points Not Enough as Blackbirds Fall to Quinnipiac, 82-69

(boxscore)

1/23/06 -- Senior Aubin Scott (Hempstead, N.Y.) scored a career-high 26 points and added eight rebounds but the Long Island University men’s basketball team could not overcome a blistering shooting night from Quinnipiac as they fell, 82-69, on Monday evening.

Junior James Williams (DeSoto, Texas) added 17 points, 16 of which came in the second half.

A trio of three-pointers by Adam Gonzalez in a span of 3:19 gave the Bobcats (7-10, 2-6 Northeast Conference) an early 16-10 lead with 12:04 remaining in the opening half. Quinnipiac shot 61.5 percent from the floor in the first half and held the Blackbirds to just 36.4 percent.

Single-handedly keeping LIU close, Scott would score 19 of his team’s last 26 points in the stanza. Scott’s performance included a run of 16 straight points to close the period as the Blackbirds trailed 24-36 at the break.

Scott tallied a team-high 19 points in the first half on 6-of-9 shooting from the field, besting his previous career-best by one. Junior Esa Maki-Tulokus (Forssa, Finland) added 10 of his 13 in the first period.

After a Scott lay-in cut the Bobcats lead to four, John Winchester scored five consecutive points to push the Quinnipiac lead to nine, 55-46, with 13:47 to play.

The Bobcats balanced scoring attack, featuring five different players in double figures, would prove to be the difference as a 7-0 run by Quinnipiac to end the game sealed the victory.

Kevin Jolley led Quinnipiac with 16 points and 10 rebounds off the bench, while Gonzalez and John Winchester scored 15 apiece.

The Blackbirds entertain Sacred Heart on Thursday, January 26 at 7:00 p.m. LIU will christen its new facility, the Wellness, Recreation and Athletic Center.