Chargers men’s basketball team took to the court to face off against The College of Saint Rose Golden Knights on  Saturday Feb. 16. Before the game, the Chargers honored seniors Najee Larcher and team manager Tyler Collins.

Larcher has played in 96 career games and had his best season in 2017-18, where he averaged 5.4 points per game, and shot a team best 65.2 percent from the field.

Collins has been part of the basketball team since his freshman year as a team manager and was recently promoted to the role of special assistant to the head coach.  

The Chargers dominated the game with a strong defense. In the first half, New Haven forced six turnovers, four of which were steals. Redshirt sophomore Derrick Rowland had three steals in the first half, and 5 points. New Haven was led in the first half by junior Elijah Bailey, who had nine points. The Chargers went into the half with the lead 38-25 leaving the Golden Knights searching for answers.

In the second half, New Haven came out strong and kept up the intensity on defense. The Chargers extended their lead to as much as 24 with 4 minutes left in the game. Rowland knocked down two 3-pointers in the half and led the team in scoring in the half with nine points. Bailey added an additional six points and junior Roy Kane Jr. added 7. The Chargers started and ended the game with strong defense and it helped them on their way to a 73-54 rout of the Golden Knights on senior day. Bailey finished the game with 15 points followed closely by Rowland and Kane’s who contributed 14 each.

The Chargers moved to 17-7 overall and are now in a virtual tie with Adelphi for first place in the NE-10 Southwest Division. New Haven will face American International College on the road at 3:30 p.m. on Feb 23. They will return home for their regular season  finale when they take on Le Moyne, on Feb 26. Tip off is set for 7:30 p.m.