M. Basketball's Win Streak Ends in 83-73 Defeat to Sage Gators

Patchogue, N.Y. – The St. Joseph's College men's basketball team (8-6, 5-2 Skyline) saw their three-game win streak ended by the Sage Gators (10-3, 5-2 Skyline) Saturday afternoon in an 83-73 loss in front of thier home fans at the Danzi Center.

St. Joseph's began the contest scoring the initial points of the game off via a lay-up from a strong drive in the lane by forward Sean McCarthy (Kings Park, N.Y. / Kings Park). The Gators responded to SJC's first points by applying relentless defense that forced the Golden Eagles to take many deep shots (11).  

At 12:55 the Gators held a 9-7 lead over SJC after sophomore guard Andy Laurent  (Amityville, N.Y. / Amityville) scored a three-pointer followed by guard Evan Mohammed's (Bayside, N.Y. / Holy Cross) two made free throws to cut the lead to two.

As the period progressed, the Gators started to pull away by going on a 17-4 run. Mohammed was able to cut into Sage's lead after hitting from beyond the arc in the last minutes before break, leaving the score 30-16.

The Golden Eagles had a revitalized second half, outscoring the Gators 57-53, but it was not enough.

Although Sage attained their largest lead of the night in the second period (20 points), it didn't deter the Eagle's efforts as guard Nick Gallina (Holbrook, N.Y. / Sachem North) hit a three-pointer which capped off a 20-10 run that cut Sage's lead to 10 points.

With eight minutes remaining in the contest the Golden Eagles fell short in successfully completing the comeback as the Gator's hit essential free throws to end the game.

Laurent was in command for SJC leading them with a team-high 18 points, along with five assists, three rebounds, a steal and a block. The Golden Eagles had two more players notching double-digit scoring figures in Mohammed (17), who shoot 50 percent from three-point range and McCarthy (13). Forward Isaiah Moore (North Babylon, N.Y./ North Babylon) led the team with seven rebounds.

St. Joseph's next matchup will be against the Maritime Privateers (3-9, 1-4 Skyline) in a Skyline Conference road battle this Thursday at 7:00 p.m.