Boston, MA - Emmanuel College dropped an 86-73 decision to Albertus Magnus College in Great Northeast Athletic Conference (GNAC) men's basketball action played in the Jean Yawkey Center on the campus of Emmanuel College this Saturday afternoon. This was just the second GNAC game of the season for both teams. Albertus Magnus remains undefeated at 2-0 in league play, while Emmanuel is still seeking its first conference win of the season. The Falcons now improve to 6-1 on the year, while the Saints drop to 1-6 overall. The Saints opened up the contest with an early lead, scoring the first points of the game off free throws by senior guard Mike Jackson (New York, NY). Emmanuel extended their early lead to eight points (13-5), when freshman guard Michael Mailhot (Norwich, CT) found Isaiah Duke (Albany, NY) open on the wing for a quick jumper, forcing Albertus Magnus' second timeout with 15 minutes to play in the half. The Falcons cut the lead to three points at 17-14 after a fast-break three-pointer from junior guard Walden St. Juste (Hartford, CT). Albertus eventually took the lead on another three point field goal by St. Juste, making it 24-21 Falcons. Albertus extended the margin to five points (26-21) after a fast break lay-up by St. Juste with eight and a half minutes to play forcing an Emmanuel timeout. St. Juste's buckets were part of a 12-0 Albertus run and the Falcons would enter halftime leading 49-37. Emmanuel chipped away at the Falcon lead and managed to cut the margin to three points at 54-51 on a basket by freshman guard Xavier Everson (Rochester, NY) with 15:17 to play. The Saints would come no closer than three, as the Falcons extended their lead to as many as fifteen points late in the second half. St. Juste finished with 26 points on 10 for 16 shooting to lead the Falcons. Sophomore forward Ray Askew (New Haven, CT) added 18 points and a game-high 11 rebounds for the Falcons. Freshman forward Jefferson Lora (Bronx, NY) also notched a double-double for Albertus with 10 points and 10 boards to go along with his six blocks. Duke led the Saints with a game high 30 points and eight rebounds. The Falcons resume play next semester on January 6th in Hartford, CT at Trinity College with a 7:30pm tip-off.
