The Pilgrims faced off with the Lions of Eastern Nazarene College on Saturday, Feb. 12. The matchup started off pretty tight at first as the score was tied at 21 a piece with a little less than eight minutes left in the 1st half. From there, ENC went on a 16-4 run to end the half to make the score 37-25.
In the beginning of the second half the Pilgrims turned it around. A steal that led to a fast break layup for Calvin Cheek, followed by two three – point shots from Kareem Octavian, brought the Pilgrims within 10 with a score of 43-33. Kyle Inglis hit a three-pointer with about 13 minutes left in the 2nd half while getting fouled and hit the free throw to complete the 4-point play. This fired up the Pilgrims offense as Jamal Allen hit a three the next time down the court. Calvin Cheek was an absolute menace on defense the entire 2nd half seemingly getting a steal every possession. Jamal Allen hit a three-pointer with five minutes left to tie it up at 60 apiece. The Lions would get the ball back, and Cheek got another steal that led to a fast break layup to put the Pilgrims up 62-60. ENC would go down the court and score but only for Cheek to go coast to coast for a layup to put the Pilgrims up 62-64.With a minute and a half left Jamal Allen hit a tough layup to make the score 62-66 and the Pilgrims now had some breathing room with more than a one possession lead. After another layup by Cheek and a jump shot by Allen, the Pilgrims were up 70-66. Cheek got yet another steal to cap off the game and the Pilgrims dribbled out the clock for the huge conference win on senior day.
“It was a great overall vibe,” said Errol Crawford, a senior center on the team. “We came back from a very tough deficit in the first half, after many shots weren’t falling for us early. Once we got that figured out, it all started to come together for us.”
The Pilgrims were led by Calvin Cheek who nearly posted a quadruple double with 16 points, 18 rebounds, 10 assists, and 9 steals. Jamal Allen was the team leader in points with 17, hitting three 3-pointers. The defense from the Pilgrims in this game is what really stood out. With the Pilgrims 15 steals, led by Cheek’s 9, and Kareem Octavian had 3. The Pilgrims also had 5 blocks. Led by Errol Crawford with 2. The Pilgrims next matchup is Wednesday February 16th at home vs. Lesley College.
