Top-Ranked Men's Hoops Stays Undefeated, Downs Albertus Tuesday, 88-64

WEST HARTFORD, Conn. - The top-ranked University of Saint Joseph (USJ) men's basketball team earned a gutsy win over intrastate and Great Northeast Athletic Conference (GNAC) rival Albertus Magnus College (AMC), 88-64, in a hard-fought and physical GNAC South Division contest inside James A. Calhoun Gymnasium Tuesday night in West Hartford, Conn. With the victory, the Blue Jays remain the lone undefeated team left in NCAA Division III men's hoops and improve to 21-0 overall and 14-0 in GNAC play. The Falcons dip to 12-8 overall and 10-3 in the league with the setback.

GAME INFORMATION 
Score: #1 Saint Joseph 88, Albertus Magnus 64
Records: #1 USJ (21-0, 14-0 GNAC), AMC (12-8, 10-3 GNAC)
Location: James A. Calhoun Gymnasium (West Hartford, Conn.)

HOW IT HAPPENED

Albertus Magnus won the tip and scored on its opening possession, but Saint Joseph answered with a layup by graduate student guard Ryan O'Neill (Litchfield, Conn.) on its first trip down the floor to start to game. Both teams went blow-for-blow over a frantic first few minutes and when the dust settled the game was knotted at 8-8 with 15:30 left to play in the first half. Then, the Blue Jays initiated the first run of the contest and used a 12-3 spurt to build a nine-point lead, 20-11, with just over 10 minutes left to play in the opening period. O'Neill and graduate student forward Alec Kinder (West Haven, Conn.) provided all of offense for USJ during the spurt with six points each. The Blue Jays would never trail again for the remainder of the contest.

The Falcons best run of the first half followed and they used a quick 5-0 stretch to claw back and make it a four-point game, 22-18, with 8:32 to go before the break. However, Saint Joseph punched right back and scored the ensuing nine consecutive points to push its lead out to 13 (31-18) with 6:21 remaining on the first-half clock. The teams traded buckets over the next couple of minutes until AMC ended the half strong, outscoring USJ 8-2 over the final two minutes of the first half, to trim the gap to eight, 39-31, entering the intermission. Albertus Magnus' freshman guard Tyrone Cummings (New Britain, Conn.) beat the first-half buzzer with a mid-range jumper, looking to swing the momentum in favor of the visitors, to cap the run as the half expired.

O'Neill was the primary source of offense for the Blue Jays over the first 20 minutes of action, dropping 19 first-half points on 5-of-8 shooting from the field, including 2-of-4 from beyond the arc. He also went 7-of-8 from the free-throw line as the Blue Jays as a team shot 17-of-22 (77.3%) from the charity stripe. Kinder was a spark for USJ off the bench in the first half and added eight points, seven rebounds, and three blocks. AMC's freshman guard Jeyson Slade (Stamford, Conn.) had 10 in the first stanza to lead the Falcons who slightly outshot the Blue Jays 35.5% (11-31) to 31.3% (10-32) over the opening half of play.

Despite the first-half buzzer-beater by the Falcons, it was the Blue Jays who came out strong to start the second half and they outscored the visitors 16-4 over the first five and a half minutes of the final period to pull away and build a 20-point advantage, 55-35, with 14:31 left in regulation. Albertus Magnus would get back within 19 points on two separate occasions, but then Saint Joseph rattled off a quick 12-2 burst, capped by a three from freshman guard Jonathan Box (Frisco, Texas), to take its largest lead of the game, 71-42, and essentially put the game away with 9:19 remaining in the game. The Blue Jays denied any chance of a big run by the Falcons as the teams traded baskets over the remaining time on the clock en route to the 88-64 triumph.

INSIDE THE BOX SCORE

• O'Neill led a quartet of USJ scorers in double figures on the night, finishing with a game-high 26 points. He also grabbed five rebounds and had two steals.
• O'Neill connected on 7-of-13 shots from the field, including 3-of-7 from beyond the arc, and hit 9-of-10 tries from the free-throw line.
• Senior guards Jaecee Martin (Hartford, Conn.) and Delshawn Jackson Jr. (Hartford, Conn.), along with Kinder, were the other Blue Jays in double figures, netting 17, 12, and 10 points, respectively.
• Kinder logged his third career double-double, finishing with 10 rebounds to go along with his 10 points. He also registered a career-high five blocks and career-high four steals.
• Two players scored in double figures for the Falcons led by 16 points from graduate student forward Terry Dawkins (Bronx, N.Y.)
• USJ forced 20 AMC turnovers and turned those miscues into 24 USJ points.
• The Falcons held a slight edge overall on the glass, 43-41.
• After shooting 31.3% in the first half, Saint Joseph got hot and connected on 66.7% (18-37) from the field in the second half.
• Overall, USJ outshot AMC in the game 47.5% (28-59) to 32.9% (23-70) from the field and 46.7% (7-15) to 22.2% (2-9) from three.

NOTES

• Saint Joseph remains the lone undefeated team left in NCAA Division III men's basketball.
• USJ has now won its last 49 straight conference games which is the longest active streak in the nation.
• The Blue Jays have now won their last 27 straight home games which is the third longest streak in the nation.
• Tonight's game marked the ninth meeting all-time between the two programs.
• The Blue Jays are now 7-2 all-time versus the Falcons and have won the last seven consecutive meetings.

UP NEXT

Men's basketball returns back to the hardwood on Thursday, February 2 for another GNAC contest at home and hosts the Elms College Blazers in the second game of GNAC basketball doubleheader. The opening game of the evening features the USJ and Elms women's teams starting at 5:00 p.m., while tipoff of the men's game is slated for approximately 7:00 p.m. inside James A. Calhoun Gymnasium in West Hartford, Conn. Tickets to attend Thursday's doubleheader can be purchased by visiting www.usjbluejays.com/tickets. Admission is valid for both games. Fans who cannot make it to West Hartford can watch all of the action live by visiting https://portal.stretchinternet.com/usj/.