Bears Snap Five-Game Skid With Conference Victory Over Vaughn

(BROOKLYN, NY)  Sophomore Jon Matzelle (Queens, NY / St. Francis Prep) led the Bears for the second straight game in an 80-41 Hudson Valley Men's Athletic Conference win over Vaughn College at Brooklyn Technical High School.

St. Joseph's did not trail in the sloppy game where both teams combined for 66 turnovers and 40 fouls.  The Bears attempted 32 more shots in the opening half caused by the Warriors 30 turnovers, which helped the St. Joseph's to a 39-17 halftime lead.  For the game, the Bears had a +22 turnover differential which they converted to 36 points.  Coach Joseph Cocozello's bench all saw significant minutes accounting for 42 points, outscoring the Vaughn team, and every Bear netted at least one field goal.

Matzelle tallied 12 points on 6-for-13 shooting, all coming in the first half.  Fellow sophomore Justin Gist (Brooklyn, NY / Newsome) netted 11 points, on 2-for-3 shooting from behind the arc and grabbed six rebounds and four steals.  Larry Fawcett (Queens, NY / Christ the King) and Donald Coleman (Brooklyn, NY / Nazareth) each added 8 points in a reserve role.

Vaughn College was led by Greg Jones (11 points) and Mahdi Macbahi (13 rebounds) and falls to 1-3 in Hudson Valley play, 4-7 overall.

St. Joseph's continues their dominance in the Hudson Valley, losing only one regular season conference game in the last four seasons and improving to 2-0 in conference this season and 5-10 overall.  The Bears have a chance to tie Berkeley for first place in conference as they sit a half-game back and face Albany Pharmacy on the road this Saturday at 6:00 PM.