Trine University Strikes Bears in Tournament of Heroes Championship

(STATEN ISLAND, NY)  Justin Gist (Brooklyn, NY / Newsome) played all 40 minutes and scored 23 in a 71-55 loss to the Trine University Lightning at the CSI Sports and Recreation Center on Monday night in the championship game of the Tournament of Heroes.

Trine scored on the opening possession and would never relinquish the lead.  St. Joseph's kept the game close for most of the half and a Gist triple with 9:00 on the clock pulled the Bears within one at 13-12 and both teams continued to trade baskets for the next four minutes.  After missing their first 15 attempts from long range, Trine connected on two 3-pointers to extend their lead to 9 with three minutes on the clock.  Both teams then traded trifectas until the end of the half, with Mike Dziewit (Brooklyn, NY / Wadleigh) and Luke Klimaszewski (Queens, NY / St. John's Prep) connecting for the Bears, and the Lightning took at 30-24 lead into the lockers.

Trine opened the second half with a 12-2 run to push the lead to 16.  The Lightning held the lead firmly in double-digits for the remainder of the game, bolstered by 15-for-24 (62.5%) shooting from the floor.  Trine also improved their long range shooting going 4-for-7, with Wes Weir netting 17 second-half points on 4-for-5 shooting from behind the arc.  St. Joseph's also connected on 6 of their own triples, but Trine's second-half offensive efficiency was too much to keep up and the Bears finished as the runner-up 71-55.

Gist, who was named to the all-tournament team, shot 5-for-10 from behind the arc, dished out 4 assists and his 23 points is his best performance this season.  Larry Fawcett (Queens, NY / Christ the King) added 10 in a reserve role, with three 3-pointers, and five rebounds.  Jon Matzelle(Queens, NY / St. Francis Prep) grabbed a team-high nine boards.  Trine was led by Wes Weir who tallied 27 points with 6-for-11 from long range.  Lamar Jackson added 13 points and Glenn Alfieri had 10 rebounds.

St. Joseph's falls to 4-6 and Trine improves to 4-7.  The Bears travel this weekend to Washington, D.C. to compete in the Catholic University Tournament facing the host in the opening round.  Catholic took an 88-43 decision earlier this season when the two teams met in the Mt. Aloysius Coaches vs. Cancer Tournament.