Panthers Outlast Bears in Regis Tournament Championship

Contributed by Regis Sports Information

WESTON, Mass. – Forty minutes weren't enough to decide a champion in the Regis Tip-Off Tournament but in the extra period Purchase College pulled away from St. Joseph's College (Brooklyn), handing the Bears their first setback of the season, 83-74, on Saturday afternoon on Higgins Court.

St. Joseph's (1-1) was led by St. Joseph's Michael Megafu (Brooklyn, NY/Nazareth Regional) who posed his second straight double-double with 19 points and 11 rebounds. Sophomore David Louison (Brooklyn, NY/St. Edmund Prep) secured a game-high 17 rebounds, falling one point shy of a double-double. Both were named to the All-Tournament squad for their efforts.

Three Bears finished in double-figures as senior Thomas Karasinski (Staten Island, NY/New Dorp) chipped in 11 points and Emitt Hightower (Brooklyn, NY/Immaculata (NJ) added 10 points both in reserve roles.

Purchase (2-0) was paced by Craig Davis who posted 13 points and grabbed 12 rebounds and was named Tournament MVP. Joel Neri was also named to the All-Tournament team adding 13 points and five rebounds. The Panthers produced a balanced attack with five scoring in double-figures led by Andre Nixon's game-high-tying 19 points, knocking down five three-pointers. 

Purchase took an early 7-3 lead in the Championship game following a deep three from Nixon. Another Nixon three-ball extended the lead to 12-3, before Karasinski came off the bench for the Bears and buried a three of his own to cut the deficit in half. St. Joseph's chipped away and took a 16-15 lead on a Megafu jumper with 9:14 to play in the opening half.

A Louison layup made it a three-point game on the next possession, but this time it was Purchase who fought back, taking a 21-20 lead on a pair of Nixon free throws. Neri's layup and free throw after being fouled with 5:01 to play gave Purchase a four point lead before the Bears rallied back with a 12-5 spurt capped off by an Hightower triple to give St. Joseph's the lead back at 32-29. A Neri basket and another three from Nixon were the final points of the half as the Panthers took a two point lead into the break, 34-24.

Nixon led all scorers at the half with 14 points, while Neri chipped in with 13 of his own on 6-of-8 shooting and five rebounds. Megafu led the Bears at the break with nine points and seven rebounds. 

Davis opened the second half with a jumper to give the Panthers a four point lead, but the Bears used a 5-0 run to take a 37-36 lead only 1:42 into the second half. Purchase responded with a 9-2 run of its own to take a 45-39 lead on a John Pressley layup. The teams went back-and-forth before a Megafu jumper gave St. Joseph's a 52-51 lead with just over 10 minutes to play in regulation.

The two sides traded leads until an Amar Reynolds layup gave Purchase a 59-56 advantage at the 6:57 mark. A David Ortiz (Brooklyn, NY/Christ the King) free throw and Louison jumper tied the game up at 59-all before Davis and Ian Duff (Jamaica, NY/Christ the King) traded buckets, giving the Panthers a late 62-61 lead. Hightower took the lead back for the Bears with a pair of free throws and Nixon answered with a pair of his own to take the lead back for Purchase.

Louison scored on an offensive rebound to make it 65-64, but Amar Reynolds put home a Malik Atkins miss on the fast break to make it 66-65 Purchase. Hightower answered with a 19-foot jumper on the ensuing possession before Davis hit two free throws to make it 68-67. Louison could not put home another second chance opportunity for St. Joseph's and Pressley buried a running jumper on the break to give the Panthers a 70-67 lead with two minutes to play.

Louison was fouled taking a shot, but went 1-for-2 at the line to leave the Bears trailing 70-68. Louison made up for it on the defensive end, forcing a steal and giving the Bears a chance to tie the game. Out of a timeout, Duff found Megafu for a layup under the basket, tying the game at 70-all.

St. Joseph's forced an errant jumper by the Panthers and had a chance for the win in the final 30 seconds. After winding the clock down to :07, Louison found himself at the top of the key with the ball in his hands. The junior drove left and put up a running jumper, but it was off the mark as play spilled into overtime.

The extra period was all Purchase as they outscored the Bears at 13-4 in the period, allowing only one made field goal and a pair of free throws.

Purchase won the battle of the boards, 83-74, and also committed only 19 turnovers to the Bears' 26. The Panthers turned those missteps into 31 points off turnovers and outscored St. Joseph's 34-24 in the paint.   

St. Joseph's returns home to host Vassar College in their home opener on Tuesday, November 20 at Brooklyn Technical High School. Tip-off is slated for 7:30 p.m. with live stats and video available on SJCBears.com.