Daye Breaks Bloomfield College Record, Leads Deacons to CACC Semis

The last thing Gage Daye wanted was for his team to be knocked out of the Central Atlantic Collegiate Conference (CACC) tournament.

The notion would have ruined the day that was a big one for the senior guard who was named CACC Player of the Year just before Tuesday night's game for the second consecutive year. In addition, during the game, Daye became the top scorer in the history of Bloomfield College men’s basketball.

But Daye would have thrown that all away to win the CACC quarterfinal game against rival Felician College of Lodi/Rutherford, a team the Deacons split wins with during the season.

Daye would get his wish as the Deacons (No. 1 seed in CACC north division) defeated the fourth seeded Falcons, 77-70, in a fierce battle that had the Bloomfield leading almost the entire way - but it wasn't easy.

"It would have been terrible," said Daye about the notion of losing to Felician. "I knew that my team would come through."

Daye led the way with 31 points along with eight assists, six rebounds and four steals. Of the 31 points, the Deacons senior hit 15 of 16 free throws. Senior guard Ryan Rodrigues added 13 points, all of which came in the first half.

While Felician had the lead eight minutes into the game, Bloomfield regained it with a bucket from junior forward Matt Wafula with 11 minutes remaining in the first half, giving the Deacons a 17-15 lead.

Bloomfield College would never look back, but Holmes said that his team should have accumulated a double-digit lead instead of a 38-34 advantage going into the half.

"We had too many turnovers and defensive lapses," said Holmes, who gave his team a spirited talk during halftime.

The Deacons took their coach's half-time discussion to heart as Bloomfield came out and scored the first seven points of the second half for a 45-34 lead. Freshman guard Steve Henderson helped build on that lead with a three-point bucket for a 54-40 lead halfway through the second half.

That was about the time Felician started using the full court press and Bloomfield struggled with it when they started turning over the ball.

"We have not seen it all year," said Holmes. "The only time we press is in practice."

Falcons' Kashiff Foster dropped a three-point basket from the left side to slice the Bloomfield lead to three, 60-57, with a little less than six minutes remaining in the game.

After that, the Deacons responded with a couple of baskets to keep them arms-length ahead of Felician, led by Daye who was flawless at the free throw line.

For Daye it was a bittersweet night.

"It was incredible," said Daye about becoming the all time leading Deacons scorer. "It was tough because I will miss this place."

One of the people who will miss Daye is Holmes.

"You can't keep them forever," said Holmes. "He's just a tremendous player and works hard."

Holmes recalls the team's most recent loss, an 86-72 loss at Post in Connecticut.

"We got back from Connecticut and I was leaving the school and he was still shooting baskets at 12:45 a.m.," said Holmes.

The Deacons raised its record to 19-8 and head to Philadelphia Friday where they face Chestnut Hill College in the CACC semifinals.

"We have the talent to go all the way," said Bloomfield College head coach Gerald Holmes, whose team last won the CACC title in 2006.

And for both Holmes and Daye they hope to not only put up another CACC title banner but also a NCAA Division II title flag at the Deacons’ Den.