Men’s Basketball Edges Maritime for First Win of 2018-19

Patchogue, NY| The St. Joseph's College (L.I.) men's basketball team edged Skyline Conference rival SUNY Maritime, 66-63, for its first win of the 2018-19 season inside the Danzi Center on Tuesday evening.

With the win, the Golden Eagles improve to 1-2 overall on the year and 1-0 in conference play as the Privateers slip to 1-3 (0-1 Skyline).

Senior Mike Harris led all players with 23 points on 7-for-18 shooting. The guard also grabbed seven rebounds and shot 3-for-8 from three.

Junior Frank Basile tallied a double-double with 16 points and a game-best 13 rebounds. Sophomore Anthony Simpson pitched in with 12 points (5-for-8 FG) and freshman Matthew Hirdt contributed six points off the bench.

Maritime was paced by Brennan Whelan, who scored 17 points and dished out a game-best seven assists.

SJC carried play throughout much of the first half, taking leads as large six points (23-17), but Maritime captured nine of the frame's final 15 points and trailed by only three at the break.

A late-game surge, capped off with a Michael Walker three-pointer, brought the Privateers to within one point (60-59) with just over a minute to play, but Harris responded 40 seconds later with a three-ball of his own to extend SJC's lead to four points (63-59).

Simpson and Harris added tallies in the closing moments and steered St. Joseph's to a 66-63 victory.

SJC held advantages in most all statistical categories, including field-goal percentage (43.1% to 37.3%), three-point shooting percentage (40.0% to 17.9%) and rebounds (42-39). Maritime was the superior team in the paint, where they outscored the hosts 36-22.

The Golden Eagles return to action on Sunday, November 25 when they visit Connecticut College for a non-conference contest at 3:00 pm.