Men's Hoops Shoots Past Vikings in Opening Game of Steve Moore Sunshine Shootout

WINTER PARK, Fla. – The University of Saint Joseph (USJ) men's basketball team shot its way to the championship game of the Steve Moore Sunshine Shootout, defeating the Bethany Lutheran College Vikings, 78-64, in the opening contest of the tournament Tuesday afternoon inside the Harold & Ted Alfond Sports Center on the campus of Rollins College. The Blue Jays connected on a season-high 11 three-pointers in the win as they improve to 8-2 overall on the season and advance to play the College of Wooster Fighting Scots Wednesday afternoon at 3:00 p.m. in the title game.

Three players finished in double figures to lead the Blue Jays in the triumph over the Vikings, who fall to 7-3 on the year with the setback. Senior guard Tyree Mitchell (East Hartford, Conn.) had 18 first-half points and finished with a game-high 24. He was joined by sophomore guard Lence Altenor (Everett, Mass.) and senior guard Chaylyn Martin (Hartford, Conn.), who finished with 16 points and 10 points, respectively. 

HOW IT HAPPENED

• The Blue Jays held the Vikings scoreless for the opening 4:38 of the contest and raced out to an 11-2 lead courtesy of eight early points from Mitchell.
• Back-to-back three pointers by the Vikings, sandwiched around a layup by USJ's junior guard Kevin Cummings (Portsmouth, N.H.), cut their deficient to 13-8 with just under 14 minutes to play in the first half.
• USJ answered with a quick 4-0 spurt to put the Blue Jays up 17-8 and forced a Bethany Lutheran timeout with 12:42 to go on the first-half timer.
• Both teams traded points and USJ held a 10-point lead (28-18) with just over eight minutes left in the first half, until Bethany Lutheran ripped off five quick points and cut it to 28-23, forcing a Blue Jays timeout with 7:01 remaining before the break.
• Saint Joseph responded out of the stoppage and scored the next five points to rebuild its 10-point advantage (33-23) with 4:40 to play in the first half.
• However, the Vikings punched back with their biggest run of the game, utilizing a 10-0 stretch to level the score at 33-all with just over a minute to go before halftime.
• Both teams missed three-point attempts on the ensuing two possessions before Mitchell gave the Blue Jays a much-needed lift entering the locker rooms, drilling a triple from the wing to send USJ into the intermission leading, 36-33.
• USJ opened the second stanza strong with back-to-back threes from Martin and Altenor to establish a 42-33 edge less than two minutes into the final frame.
• The Vikings chipped away over the subsequent four minutes and trimmed it to a three-point game (48-45) before senior forward Jalen Samuels (Franklin, Mass.) converted an old-fashioned three-point play to put the Blue Jays up 51-45 with just under 14 minutes to go.
• The game of runs continued as Bethany Lutheran followed with a 5-0 spurt to get within one (51-50) with 12:56 on the clock before USJ countered with an 8-3 stretch to reestablish a five-point lead (58-53) with 10 minutes to go.
• The Vikings punched back and scored the next six points via a three by senior guard Xavier Patterson (Superior, Wis.) and a traditional three-point play by senior center Hunter Nielsen (New Prague, Minn.) to take their first lead of the game (59-58) with 8:58 left in regulation.
• However, the Blue Jays answered with a game-breaking run and rattled off 10 straight points over a 3:12 span to take control of the contest and go up 68-59. The run was capped by a Cummings three and forced a Bethany Lutheran timeout with 5:30 to play.
• Patterson was fouled and knocked down a pair of freebies for the Vikings out of the timeout to get them within seven (68-61), but that would be as close as they would get for the remainder of the game as the Blue Jays outscored the Vikings 10-3 over the final five minutes to seal the 78-64 victory.

INSIDE THE BOX SCORE

• Mitchell connected on 10-of-16 attempts from the field for USJ, including 3-of-7 from beyond the arc, to net his game-high 24 points. It marked the third straight game Mitchell has scored 20-plus points.
• Nielsen led the way for the Vikings with a team-high 17 points on 7-of-9 shooting from the floor.
• USJ shot 48.4% (30-62) overall from the field, including 53.3% (16-30) in the second half, compared to Bethany Lutheran's 41.8% (23-55) overall and 40.7% (11-27) in the second half.
• USJ made 39.3% (11-28) of its attempts from distance in route to setting a new season-high in three-point makes. The Vikings shot 29.6% (8-27) from three.
• The Blue Jays won the battle on the glass, outrebounding the Vikings, 36-29. USJ's sophomore forward Friedrich Feldrappe (Berlin, Germany) grabbed a game-high eight boards.
• Today's contest marked the first-ever meeting between the two programs.

UP NEXT

Men's basketball advances to play in the Steve Moore Sunshine Shootout championship game tomorrow, Wednesday, December 20 against the College of Wooster, who earned its way to the title game by defeating Suffolk, 75-55, in the other contest on the opening day of the tournament. Tipoff between the Blue Jays and Fighting Scots is set for 3:00 p.m. inside the Harold & Ted Alfond Sports Center on the campus of Rollins College in Winter Park, Fla.

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