FRANKLIN, Mass. — The Albertus Magnus College men's basketball team won its fourth consecutive game, defeating Dean College, 69-57 on Tuesday evening in Great Northeast Athletic Conference (GNAC) action.

The Falcons never trailed in the game as Ray Ford, Jr. (Jersey City, N.J.) led the Falcons with 22 points to go with five rebounds. Ta'Zhon Daniels (New Haven, Conn.) scored 16 points with four asssists and three steals. Kevin Crawford came off the bench and scored 10 points. 

Albertus is currently in a four-way tie for first place in the GNAC as Rivier University, Lasell University and the University of Saint Joseph (Conn.) all remain undefeated in conference play. 

THE BASICS

FINAL: Albertus Magnus 69 | Dean 57

RECORDS: Albertus (6-7, 2-0 GNAC) | Dean (9-3, 1-1 GNAC)

BOX

HOW IT HAPPENED

• Albertus opened the first half with seven straight points off layups by Malcolm Duncanson (West Haven, Conn.), Deivone Tanksley (Hartford, Conn.) and a three-pointer by Ford, Jr. Dean posted four points to match the visitors scoring run to keep the game close at 7-4 with 14:42 remaining.
• The teams traded baskets for the next eight minutes to stay within a single-digit margin until a trio of three-pointers by Ford and a steal and layup by Kevin Crawford (Bridgeport, Conn.) gave the Falcons a 27-16 lead with 5:15 remaining in the first half. Daniels recorded assists on all three of Ford's long-range shots.
• The Bulldogs then scored the next seven points, ignited by a layup from Ja'Maine Davenport and five straight free throws to bring the game within four, 27-23.
• With 2:32 left before halftime, Albertus closed out the half with a 10-4 run jumpstarted by a layup from Crawford as the Falcons pushed the lead back up to double-digits before going into the locker room. Crawford scored four points during the run and Tahijj Hunter (Mount Laurel, N.J.) made a basket with 16 seconds left to give Albertus the 37-27 lead.
• Less than two minutes into the second half, Ford secured the defensive rebound off a missed layup, followed by a fastbreak layup and a foul on the other end. The junior was able to convert the three-point play and stack on Albertus' 40-27 lead.
• Greg Farrow's fastbreak layup off a steal shortened the gap to 11 but Tanksley and Daniels combined for five points and grew the Flcons lead to 45-29. Daniels' three-point play at 15:37 capped the run for Albertus' largest lead of the game.
• The Bulldogs went on a 9-0 run led by four points from Christian Yeates to cut the Albertus lead to 45-38 with 11:44 remaining. Albertus followed with the next five points, starting with a three from Daniels followed by a layup from Crawford after Hinnant had a block and rebound on the other end of the court that led to the basket.
• After Dean once again made it a seven-point game, Duncanson, Ford, Jr. and Daniels made consecutive baskets to go back up 60-47 with 4:56 left. Dean would not get closer than ten points the rest of the way.

TEAM STATS

Albertus

34.7 FG% | 26.1 3PT% | 61.9 FT% 

Dean

30.0 FG% | 18.2 3PT% | 75.8 FT% 

LEADERS

Albertus

Ray Ford, Jr. 22 Points | 5 Rebounds | 1 Assist | 1 Steal | 1 Block | 3-3 FT

Ta'zhon Daniels 16 Points | 4 Assists | 3 Steals | 2 Rebounds | 7-7 FT

Kevin Crawford 10 Points | 3 Rebounds | 2 Steals | 1 Assist | 5-8 FG

Dean

Frankie Idlett 18 Points | 5 Rebounds | 2 Steals | 9-9 FT

Billy ray Barnes 10 Points | 8 Rebounds | 2 Assists | 2 Blocks 1-1 3PT

NOTEWORTHY

• Ford has back-to-back games with 20 or more points and at least five rebounds.
• Daniels has four consectuive games in double figures and has recorded a steal in nine of the 13 games so far this season.
• The Falcons lead the all-time matchup 5-0.

UP NEXT

Albertus stays on the road to face Lasell on Saturday, January 11 at 3 p.m.