Four in Double Figures Not Enough as Lehman Pushes Past Golden Eagles, 86-71

Written by Joshua Soto (SJC-LI Sports Information)

Bronx, NY | Despite a game-best 16 points (7-14 FG) from freshman Frank Basile the St. Joseph's College (L.I.) men's basketball was handed a 86-71 defeat by Lehman College in Bronx, NY on Monday afternoon.

With the loss the Golden Eagles slide to 5-13 on the year as the Lightning improve to 10-8.

The Golden Eagles found themselves down 17-8 at the midway point in the first half before senior guard Fernando Vazquez made three free throws to close the gap to six (11-17). Lehman extended its lead to double-digits (24-13) at the 6:55 mark and maintained its sizeable lead prior to taking a 42-30 advantage into halftime.   

Down 47-57 at 11:58 of the second Vazquez sank another three free throws to bring the Golden Eagles to within seven (57-50). At 8:21 a Basile jumper closed SJC's deficit to three (66-63), but the Lightning surged backed with a 7-0 run to take a 10-point lead (63-73). The Golden Eagles tried to mount a comeback but Lehman would close out the game with an 86-71 victory.

Basile registered his first-career double-double with 16 points off the bench and a season-high 12 rebounds.

Vazquez contributed 13 points and an assist, and fellow senior Andy Laurent added 12 points on 5-10 shooting from the field.

Lehman outshot SJC from the field 54.9%-41.1% but the Golden Eagles held the advantage in second chance points (17-12) and points in the paint (20-18).

The Golden Eagles return to action on Wednesday, January 25 when they host The Sage Colleges in a Skyline Conference tilt at 7:00 PM. Live stats will be available here.