Men’s Basketball Captures Top Spot in HVMAC With Win Over Berkeley

(BROOKLYN, NY) Ervin Maddox (Staten Island, NY/St. Peter's) scored a game-high 21 points to lead four Bears in double-figures on Saturday night in front of a standing room only crowd at Brooklyn Technical High School for a 72-60 win over Berkeley College.  With the win, St. Joseph's remains undefeated and sits in sole possession of first place atop the Hudson Valley Men's Athletic Conference. 

St. Joseph's led by as many as 11 in the first half before Berkeley made a late run to cut the lead to five at halftime, 25-20.  Berkeley struggled to connect on the offensive end, shooting only 17 percent (5-for-29) while St. Joseph's fared slightly better at 28 percent (9-for-32).

The Bears opened the second twenty with a 17-1 run to extend to their largest lead of the game at 21.  Berkeley managed to cut the deficit to seven on three occasions, but St. Joseph's improved 47 percent shooting for the half kept the lead firmly above 10 for most of the half.

Maddox shot 10-for-14 and dished out seven assists and grabbed five assists.  Jon Matzelle (Queens, NY/St. Francis Prep) added 17 points and fell one rebound short of a double-double.  Justin Gist (Brooklyn, NY/Newsome) also added 17 and pulled six rebounds.  Donald Coleman (Brooklyn, NY/Nazareth) recorded his first career double-double with 10 points and 10 rebounds.

Moyram Espino led Berkeley with 12 points and Michael Bloomfield turned in a 10 point, 11 rebound double-double coming in as a reserve.

St. Joseph's improves to 8-11 and has not lost a regular season game to Berkeley in 14 meetings.  Berkeley falls to 7-7 and 4-1 in the HVMAC.  The Bears return to action on the road on Saturday, February 7 against USCAA opponent New Hampshire Technical Institute.  Game time is scheduled for 4 p.m.