SPRINGFIELD, Massachusetts - The American International College men's basketball team capped off its senior night with a win over Adelphi University by a final score of 92-80.
It was a team performance that brought victory to the Yellow Jackets as four players Tahlib Swan, Juwan Moody, Rasheed Howard and Bruce Spruell finished in double-digit scoring. Spruell led the way with 20 points, Howard finished with 19, and Moody and Swan ended with 17 and 15 points respectively. Swan added 10 rebounds to finish with a double-double and Spruell finished with seven boards to go with his 20 points. Jayvon Pitts-Young also had a solid game for the Yellow Jackets, finishing with nine points, 10 rebounds and five assists.
Adelphi battled the Yellow Jackets until the end. Michael Coffey led them in a scoring with a game-high 29 points and Conor McGuinness finished with 20 points. Coffey ended with a double-double as he led the team in rebounding as well with 11 boards.
The game was close most of the way with a total of 19 lead changes and seven ties. Both teams were also close in rebounding, with Adelphi edging the battle of the backboards by one, 45-44, and other aspects of the game including bench points, second-chance points and points in the paint.
Where AIC pulled away was points off turnovers, outscoring Adelphi 22-4. After both teams started out hot from three-point land, it was the Yellow Jackets who stayed consistent, finishing the night shooting 39 percent from deep.
It was with three and a half minutes to go that AIC started to pull away. Swan made a layup to make it a two-possession game at 78-74. After a steal from Pitts-Young, he was able to drive on the next possession and drop the ball off to Howard for a power slam. Immediately after, Howard picked up a steal on the perimeter and threw down an uncontested fast break dunk that forced Adelphi to call timeout.
It was the perfect dunk from Howard to end an incredible senior night for both the women's basketball team and Howard's senior crew with the men's team. Adelphi started playing the foul game shortly after, but it didn't work nearly enough to help them get back into the game. AIC pulled away and senior Max Risch scored the last point of the night with a free throw that capped off AIC's 92-80 victory.
