ALBANY, New York - The American International College men's basketball team fell 76-53 to The College of Saint Rose in its last home game of the season on Wednesday, February 14.
Prior to the start of the game, three members of the Yellow Jackets were honored for senior night. Those seniors were
Tahlib Swan,
Lateef Bilewu, and
Kassim Kaba.
FAST FACTS:
Final Score: Saint Rose 76, AIC 53
Location:Henry A. Butova Gymnasium, Springfield, Massachusetts
Records:AIC falls to 11-15 and 6-12 in NE10 play; Saint Rose improves to 19-7 and 14-4 in NE10 action.
STATS LEADERS:
AIC:
Zekiah Owens: 16 points
Tahlib Swan: 12 points, four assists
Jordan Vidal: Nine points
Adonis Williams: Eight points, seven rebounds
St. Rose:
Matt Cerutti: 14 points, seven rebounds
Julian Lipinski: 12 points, nine rebounds
Mical-Ryan Boyd: 12 points, three steals
Michael Wearne: 11 points, five rebounds
Adam Anderson: 11 points
HOW IT HAPPENED:
- Down 2-0 early in the contest, the Yellow Jackets went on a 7-0 run to have a 7-2 lead at the 15:37 mark of the first half. The Golden Knights responded with a 19-0 run to build a 21-7 lead. With 1:50 left before halftime, Saint Rose increased its lead to 18 points and held a 37-19 cushion at halftime.
- After the Golden Knights went on an 8-0 run early in the second half to go up 48-24, the Yellow Jackets were able to stop the bleeding with a layup from Adonis Williams at the 15:09 mark. With 13:42 left in regulation, AIC tried to create some momentum with a fast break dunk from Andrew Anderson to make the score 50-28.
- Minutes later, a layup from Williams and then a made free throw from Jordan Vidal brought the Yellow Jackets within 19 points of the lead. At the 8:27 mark of the game, Saint Rose extended the lead to 23 points with a three from Adam Anderson. Consecutive jumpers from Williams and Vidal then brought AIC back within 19 points, but the Golden Knights answered right back with a layup from Jeff Allen.
- With just 3:11 remaining in the contest, the Yellow Jackets continued to fight back as Zekiah Owens drilled a triple to make it 65-43. Four possessions later, Kassim Kaba connected on one from beyond the arc to put the score at 70-48. In the remaining minutes of the game, Saint Rose traded baskets with AIC and made their free throws in order to cruise to a 76-53 victory.
GAME NOTES:
- Sophomore Zekiah Owens' 16 points on Wednesday night marks the 12th time the forward has scored in double figures, and was also three points shy of his career high of 19 points.
- Senior guard Tahlib Swan has now scored in double figures in 14 games this season, which is second on the team. Freshmen Adonis Williams leads that category with double figures in 15 games.
- The 12 turnovers that the Yellow Jackets committed against Saint Rose marks the seventh time they've committed 12 turnovers or fewer this season.
NEXT UP:
- Tied with Adelphi University and fighting for the last spot in the NE10 Championship Tournament, the Yellow Jackets will look to stay in the hunt when they head on the road on Saturday, February 17 to take on the University of New Haven at 3:30 p.m.
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