NEW HAVEN, Conn. - Three players scored in double figures for the Albertus Magnus College men's basketball team but the Falcons were edged by Rowan, 85-81 at The Nest on the campus of Albertus Magnus on Saturday afternoon.

Deivone Tanksley (Hartford, Conn.) had a double-double with 14 points and 10 rebounds. Antonio Bonilla (Tenafly, N.J.) and Malcolm Duncanson (West Haven, Conn.) each led the Falcons with 16 points.

THE BASICS

FINAL: Rowan 85  | Albertus Magnus 81

RECORDS: Albertus Magnus (9-3) | Rowan (8-4)

BOX

HOW IT HAPPENED

• After a back-and-forth first three minutes of the game, the Falcons went on a 9-0, all on three-pointers as Tanksley hit two and Bonilla, one to give Albertus a 16-9 lead with 15:54 remaining.
• Rowan crept back to within three at 18-15 on a Ja'Zere Noel layup, but the Falcons scored the next seven, behind baskets from Saikwon Williams (Norwalk, Conn.), Tazhon Daniels (New Haven, Conn.), and another three from Bonilla to take their biggest lead at 25-15 with 10:56 left in the first half.
• A 16-7 run from the Profs over the next four minutes got them within one at 32-31 Khalif Mears scored eight points during the run to pace Rowan. Again, Albertus responded, scoring the next seven points and taking a 38-31 lead with 5:54 remaining in the half.
• However, the Falcons scored just two points the rest of the way in the first half, both on free throws as the Profs finished on a 9-2 run to take a 44-40 lead into halftime. Bonilla scored 12 points on four three-pointers and Tanksley had 12 points and six rebounds in the first 20 minutes.
• The Falcons tied the game just over two minutes into the second half on a pair of free throws from Bonilla before the Profs took a 53-46 lead on a Marcellus Ross jump shot at the 16:47 mark. 
• Albertus followed with a 14-3 run, sparked by 11 points from Duncanson - including eight straight - to give Albertus a 60-56 lead at 12:49. 
• The Falcons held the lead for nearly the next five minutes until a Ross three-pointer gave Rowan a 69-68 lead with eight minutes remaining.
• Both teams swapped leads five times for the next 5:14 until Kevin Crawford (Bridgeport, Conn.) tied the game at 77-77 on two free throws with 2:46 remaining.
• However, Ross scored the next four points for Rowan as they were able to hold off the Falcons over the final two minutes to earn the win.

TEAM STATS

Albertus: 41.2 FG% | 70.8 FT% | 40.0 3PT%

Rowan: 39.7 FG% | 88.5 FT% | 21.1% 3PT%

INDIVIDUAL PERFORMANCES

Albertus

Deivone Tanksley 14 Points | 10 Rebounds | 2-2 3PT

Antonio Bonilla 16 Points | 4-9 3PT

Malcolm Duncanson 16 Points | 6 Rebounds | 6-9 FG

Jeyson Slade (Stamford, Conn.) 7 Points | 9 Assists

Rowan
Ja'Zere Noel 28 Points | 6 Rebounds 11-22 FG

Khalif Mears 22 Points | 12 Rebounds | 4 Steals

Marcellus Ross 18 Points | 8-8 FT

NOTEWORTHY

• Justice Washington (Hamden, Conn.) had eight points on the day and now has 800 points for his career.
• Duncanson has now scored in double figures in his last two games.
• Tanksley recorded his third consecutive double-double.
• Albertus shot 8-for-20 from three. They have hit at least eight three-pointers in three of their last four games. 
• Slade's nine assists were a career-high.
• There were seven ties and 14 lead changes.

UP NEXT

The Falcons host Lasell as their first opponents of 2024 at 3 p.m. on Saturday, January 6 in Great Northeast Athletic Conference (GNAC) play.