CHARLOTTE, N.C. – The Sacred Heart University men's basketball team wrapped up the three-game Villanova Challenge with a visit to the Old North State where the Pioneers dropped an 81-64 decision to the Queens University of Charlotte Royals.

Leading the Pioneers on the evening was redshirt senior Anquan Hill who finished with 19 points on 8-of-17 shooting while pulling down seven boards. Just behind him in the scoring column was sophomore guard Taj Bryant who among his 4-of-6 shooting effort was a perfect 3-of-3 from beyond the arc, all amounting to 14 points while hauling in a team-best eight rebounds.

Records
Sacred Heart: 1–3
Queens: 2–3

Leaders
Anquan Hill: 19 points, 8-17 FG, 7 rebounds
Taj Bryant: 14 points, 4-6 FG, 3-3 3pt FC, 8 rebounds
Dashon Gittens: 10 points,

How It Happened
Sacred Heart opened up the scoring on the afternoon with Hill scoring off the opening tip. The Royals quickly responded with back-to-back triples that flipped the score in favor of Queens, the only lead change of the night. From there, the Royals built their lead out to double figures and never looked back.

After Sacred Heart put up two straight hoops to pull within five, the Royals defense kicked in and held the Pioneers without a bucket over a five minute stretch while scoring 20 unanswered. The visitors would respond with a run of their own, this one adding up to an 18-5 scamper that cut the lead down to 12 with just over 90 seconds remaining before the break.

In a slow start to the second half, Sacred Heart scored the first four points to bring the deficit into single digits. Queens answered with a three pointer as their first hoop of the half and over the final 16 minutes of the game maintained that double digit lead, building it over 20 on two occasions down the stretch.

Of Note

·       It was the second time in the three-game Villanova Challenge the Pioneers had three players score in double figures.

·       The Royals bested Sacred Heart on fast break opportunities outscoring the visitors 27-7 when on the break.

·       The Queens bench proved to be more productive on the night, outscoring the Pioneers bench 32-12.

Up Next
The next time the Pioneers take the court will come in the friendly confines of the William H. Pitt Center as the Holy Cross Crusaders will make the trip to Fairfield on Friday, November 21. Opening tip against the Patriot League opponent is set for 7:00 p.m. with all of the action available live on ESPN+.