Men's Basketball Dominates In Season Opener, 104-50

WEST HARTFORD, Conn. — The No. 9 University of Saint Joseph (USJ) men's basketball team kicked off the season in style Saturday, taming the Moose of the University of Maine at Augusta (UMA), 104-50, inside the newly completed O'Connell Athletic Center, in the USJ Tip-Off Tournament, presented by Coca-Cola Beverages Northeast. The 54-point victory is second largest in program history (76 vs Lesley on January 5, 2019). With the win, the Blue Jays advance to the championship game of the tournament against Alvernia University, played at approximately 3:30 p.m. inside the OC on Sunday, November 7.

Senior guard Ryan O'Neill (Litchfield, Conn.) came out guns blazing with a game-high 19 points off the bench (6-10 FG, 4-5 3FG). He made his first three shots from downtown as well to ignite the Blue Jays. Sophomore forward Lucius Brittian (Mansfield, Conn.) was impressive in his Saint Joseph debut (12 Pts, 6-7 FG, 7 Reb), also off the bench. Senior guard Jaecee Martin (Hartford, Conn.) controlled the pace for USJ with 10 assists and three steals, to go along with seven points. Sophomore center Sam Martin (Milford, Maine) was the high-man for the Moose with 10. He was the only player in double-figures for the visitors. The Blue Jays turned a 12-11 contest completely in their favor with a 32-12 run to blow this one wide open before halftime. The Moose never recovered. All 16 players scored for USJ Saturday.

Saturday's doubleheader was the start of the USJ Tip-Off Tournament, sponsored by Coca-Cola Beverages Northeast. The tournament field includes USJ, University of Maine at Augusta, Alvernia University, and New Jersey City University. The winners of the semifinal games play in the championship on Sunday, November 7th at 3:30 p.m. The losers play in the consolation game at 1:00 p.m. All four games will be streamed live on usjbluejays.com. 

GAME INFORMATION 
Score: Maine-Augusta 50, #9 Saint Joseph 104 
Records: UMA (0-2), USJ (1-0)
Location: O'Connell Athletic Center | West Hartford, Conn. 
Notes: USJ Tip-Off Tournament

PLAYER QUOTE [Ryan O'Neill] "I thought we had a good team win, everyone got involved, we got to see some of the guys that don't get as many minutes normally…everyone helped out and we're looking forward to tomorrow." 

PLAYER QUOTE [Lucius Brittian] "I feel we executed really good as a whole. We really came together to do what we had to do, and got the job done today." 

COACH QUOTE [Glen Miller] 
"It was good to get out there and play our first game and get a win under our belt. It was also nice we could play almost the entire roster and guys got some good experience. Definitely did some good things, defended pretty well in the first half. If there were any negatives, it would be that we turned the ball over too much, and tomorrow in the championship game we're going to have to do a better a job with the basketball, and get the most out of each possession. I thought our intensity and our spirit, our willingness to play with each other, to play with passion, was on full display in this one. It was a good game, and we are looking forward to Sunday." 

UP NEXT 
With the win, the Blue Jays advance to the championship game of the USJ Tip-Off Tournament against Alvernia University, played at approximately 3:30 p.m. inside the OC on Sunday, November 7.

Follow USJ Athletics 
For the latest on University of Saint Joseph athletics, follow the Blue Jays on social media on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, and YouTube. 

Fans can also download the USJ Front Row Mobile App and subscribe to our Newsletter and Text Alerts. #FearTheFlock #GoBlueJays