Paxton, Mass. – Five players scored in double figures to lead the visiting Albertus Magnus College men's basketball team past Anna Maria, 108-93, on Tuesday evening at the Fuller Center in Great Northeast Athletic Conference (GNAC) action. With their second straight victory, the Falcons improve to 7-1 on the year and remain unbeaten at 4-0 in conference play, while the host AmCats drop to 6-5 overall and 2-2 in league clashes.
The Falcons raced to an early seven-point lead in the first four minutes of the game, but Anna Maria fought back on the strength of a 11-4 run to even the score at 20 apiece at the 12:33 mark of the first half. The AMCATS took their first lead of the day on the next play, a fast-break layup by senior Tyler Delorey, off a long, lofting pass from Patrick Bradanese.
The AmCats took advantage of Albertus Magnus missed jumpers and the Falcon bigs getting into foul trouble by getting out on fast-breaks. Sixteen of the team's 51 first-half points came on fast break layups. Bradanese finished the first half with six assists—all half-court lobs in transition.
The remainder of the first half was back-and-forth, as the two teams exchanged seven lead changes while also tying the score seven times. Anna Maria took the four-point lead into halftime, 51-47, on the strength of four made free-throws by senior Corey Pryor in the final 1:17 of the frame.
Bradanese buried two free-throws to kick off the second half, but it was all Albertus Magnus from there, as they used a 7-0 run to take a 55-53 lead just two minutes later. The AmCats would knot the score once more at 55-55 and would take one last lead at 61-60, before the Falcons would rush to take a six-point lead by the 13-minute mark of the second stanza. The visitors broke things open from there, using the final eight minutes of the game to build a double-digit lead en route to the 108-93 victory.
Four out of five of the Falcons starters scored in double figures, led by freshman forward Shontaey Lovell (Brooklyn, N.Y.) with 21 points. Sophomore forward Jaqhawn Walters (Hartford, Conn.) finished with a double-double thanks to 20 points and 11 rebounds, while senior guard Marc Wilson (Jersey City, N.J.) and sophomore wing Chaunce Dunbar (Windsor, Conn.) rounded out the top scorers with 19 and 14 points, respectively. Lovell and Walters had effective games in the post, combining to shoot 18-of-24 with 19 rebounds, five blocks and four steals.
Anna Maria was led by Delorey with 21 points on a 10-of-20 shooting effort from the floor. Pryor tallied 17 points and seven assists off the bench, followed by Bradanese with 16 points, seven rebounds and seven assists.
Albertus Magnus returns to action on Thursday, January 7, with a home conference tilt against Lasell at 7:00 pm at The Nest inside the Cosgrove Marcus Messer Athletic Center. The Falcons are riding a 14-game winning streak versus the Lasers.
For the latest information on the men's basketball team and Albertus Magnus athletics, follow AMCAthletics on Twitter and visit AlbertusFalcons.com.
