Post-game cheers from the locker room told the tale: St. Peter’s four-game losing streak was over.
JERSEY CITY — After it appeared that Saint Peter’s would let another game slip away, the team made timely shots and got stops to hold off the Manhattan Jaspers in a 58-52 Saturday afternoon home victory at Run Baby Run Arena.
Coach Jennifer Leedham: I never thought we were going to lose. They were locked in. They put it in the work at practice. They paid attention to every detail that would help us win the game. They trust each other.
But it wasn’t easy. A Peacocks’ 47-42 lead disappeared in the fourth quarter when the Jaspers went on an 8-0 run on Ines Gimenez Monserrat’s layup, Nitzan Amar’s free throw (11 points on the day), Tegan Young’s 3-pointer, and Hana Muhl’s jumper. Then the Peacocks responded in a flash (17 seconds to be precise), from being down three to go up two, on Fatmata Janneh’s layup and Nikola Zdenkova’s 3-pointer, which came after she caught the ball from Janneh following a Monserrat (19 points on the day) turnover.
It wasn’t over, though. Muhl’s free throws tied the game at 52 with 55 seconds to go. Then Janneh received the ball from Zdenkova, and from there, the Peacocks sophomore forward beat Leyla Ozturk to score and put herself in a position to execute a 3-point play. Janneh couldn’t execute the play after missing a free throw, but no matter; the home team took a 54-52 lead with 38 seconds to go.
“I trust my guard to make that play,” Leedham said of Zdenkova’s pass to Janneh. “She found Janneh, who saw the lane and moved the ball. She (Janneh) had the mindset to score.”
The Peacocks put the finishing touches on the game when Janneh and De’Naya Rippey hit both of their free throws apiece after the Jaspers fouled both to extend the possession of the game.
The way the game ended couldn’t have been predicted from the way it began. The Peacocks struggled to get their offense going in the first half. They trailed 17-5 after shooting 2-of-14 and 1-of-8 from the 3-point line, and the deficit was still eight points, 33-25, at halftime.
Leedham’s halftime talk paid dividends. “We talked about winning the third quarter,” Leedham said. “We had confidence in each other that we could come back and win it.” St. Peter’s (7-14, 5-7 MAAC) outscored Manhattan (11-10, 5-7) 19-6 in that quarter, which set the stage for an exciting fourth-quarter finish.
The Peacocks boasted four scorers in double figures. Linda Amaning led the home team with 14 points. Louella Allana and Zdenkova each scored 12 points apiece. Janneh, the Peacock of the Month, added 10 points with 12 rebounds, earning her 11th double-double of the season.
“I’m proud of the girls,” Leedham beamed. “They are a resilient bunch. It was a gutsy win.”
This win was huge for the Peacocks as they go into Thursday night’s road game versus conference-leading Fairfield (19-3, 13-0). The 7 p.m. tip can be seen on ESPN+.
