WEST HARTFORD, Conn. - The Albertus Magnus College men's basketball team suffered an 80-51 road setback to the No. 7 nationally-ranked Blue Jays of the University Saint Joseph's (CT) on Saturday afternoon inside the O'Connell Center. 

Rob Tindley (Lawnside, N.J.) led the Falcons' offense with 14 points, while Terry Dawkins (The Bronx, N.Y.) chipped in with 10 points and nine rebounds.      

THE BASICS
FINAL: #7 Saint Joseph's (CT) 80 | Albertus Magnus 51
RECORDS: Albertus Magnus (11-5, 9-2 GNAC) | Saint Joseph's (CT) (18-0, 13-0 GNAC) 
BOX SCORE

HOW IT HAPPENED
Albertus and USJ came out to play as both teams battled through three ties over the first four minutes of action until a 5-0 spurt by the Blue Jays gave them a five-point cushion, 11-6, heading into the first media timeout of the game at 15:11.

Out of the break, Albertus and USJ traded baskets to make it a 17-10 game, with Davon Warner (New Haven, Conn.) and Dawkins combining for four points on a layup and a made jumper, with a second media timeout pausing the contest at the 11:34 mark.

Coming out of the huddle, Albertus began to build momentum offensively putting together a 7-3 run, ignited by a free throw from Isaiah Lewis (New Haven, Conn.), to cut the deficit to three, 20-17, with 7:57 on the clock, but a 15-0 run by the Blue Jays extended the hosts' lead to 14, 35-17.

The Falcons began to show some life with a quick 5-0 run to make it a 35-22 game over the next 42 seconds, but a last-second layup from the Blue Jays sent the teams into the halftime break with the Falcons trailing by 15, 37-22.

USJ continued to run its offense, kicking off the second half with a 7-1 run that pushed the hosts' lead to 21, 44-23. A pair of free throws from Lewis broke up the run and cut the deficit to 19, 44-25, three minutes in.

From there, USJ put together a 13-5 run to take a commanding 57-30 lead with 13 minutes remaining in regulation, forcing an Albertus timeout. Out of the break, Tindley found himself wide open and nailed the trey to cut the deficit to 57-33 at the 12-minute mark.

For the remainder of the game, Albertus played catch-up as the closest the Falcons got within the Blue Jays was at the 76-51 mark behind a layup from Saikwon Williams (Norwalk, Conn.). Over the final minute, the Blue Jays added an extra four points to take the game with a final score of 80-51.

TEAM STATS

• Albertus: 28.4% FG | 22.2% 3PT | 60.0% FT
• USJ (CT): 49.2% FG | 60.0% 3PT | 65.4% FT 

KEY PERFORMERS
Albertus:

• Rob Tindley - 14 points (5-14 FG, 2-7 3PT, 2-2 FT) | 5 rebounds | 4 assists | 2 steals
• Terry Dawkins - 10 points (4-10 FG, 2-2 FT) | 9 rebounds | 1 assist | 2 blocks 
• Robby Simmons - 7 points (3-8 FG, 1-4 FT) | 8 rebounds | 1 assist | 2 steals | 1 block 

Saint Joseph's (CT): 

• Jaecee Martin - 19 points (7-12 FG, 5-6 FT) | 5 rebounds | 4 assists | 2 steals
• Ryan O'Neill - 17 points (6-9 FG, 1-2 3PT, 4-5 FT) | 5 rebounds | 1 block
• Tyree Mitchell - 16 points (6-11 FG, 4-6 FT) | 5 rebounds | 1 assist
• Chaylyn Martin - 13 points (5-8 FG, 3-4 FT) | 9 rebounds | 1 block 

NOTEWORTHY

• This is the fifth all-time meeting between Albertus and USJ.
• Albertus is now 2-3 in the all-time series against the Blue Jays.
• Dawkins has scored 10+ points in seven straight games. 
• Dawkins was one rebound shy of his fifth double-double this season with 10 points and nine boards. 
• Tindley had a season-high 14 points in today's contest.  

UP NEXT
The Albertus Magnus College men's basketball team will host the Blue Jays of Saint Joseph's (CT) on Monday, Feb. 7 at 7:30 PM inside the Cosgrove Marcus Messer Athletic Center for a home rematch.