Men's Basketball Cruises in Opener Sinking USMMA, 63-47

THROGGS NECK, N.Y.—The St. Joseph's College (Brooklyn) men's basketball team opened their 2014-15 season with a comfortable 63-47 victory over Merchant Marine Academy on Saturday afternoon in Throggs Neck, N.Y. This was St. Joseph's first of two scheduled games in the Maritime College Admiral's Classic series this weekend.

Picking up where they left off last season, David Louison (Brooklyn, N.Y./St. Edmund Prep) and Michael Megafu (Jamaica, N.Y./Nazareth Regional) both recorded double-doubles to lead four Bears in double-figures. In his first game as a senior and ranked second in Division III among active players for career double doubles, Louison filled up the stat sheet with a game-high 16 points, 10 boards and three blocked shots. Junior Megafu, the highest ranked active junior in double doubles, displayed a solid all-around effort as well with 12 points, 11 rebounds, four assists and two steals.

Senior Vernon Maddox (Staten Island, N.Y./St. Peter's) scored 11 points and grabbed five rebounds while junior Jamir Archer (Staten Island, N.Y./CSI/McCown) came off the bench to add 11 points and three boards in his Bears debut. Junior Matt O'Neill contributed game-highs in assists (5) and steals (4).

Guards Matthew Miller and Robbie Kennedy led the way for USMMA, each scoring a team-high 12 points.

Thanks to a 10-0 run in the early going, St. Joseph's (1-0) opened up a 12-2 lead at the 14:29 mark. The Mariners (0-1) were unable to make up significant ground before the half, trailing 34-25 at the intermission.

With 11:36 left in the game, USMMA managed to cut the lead from 14 to nine thanks to a quick 5-0 run. But their comeback effort would fall short as St. Joseph's would go on to outscore them 22-15 the rest of the way.

The Bears never trailed in the contest and led by as much as 24 en route to the 16-point victory.

A major key to St. Joseph's victory was the significant disparity in free throws. The Mariners managed just eight free throw attempts, making five of them. The Bears, on the other hand, regularly visited the stripe thanks to their consistent offensive pressure. St. Joseph's shot 16-26 from the line, giving them an 11-point advantage in free throw points.

The Bears also displayed a strong defensive effort, holding Merchant Marine's offense to just 28.6 percent (18-63) shooting from the field and 27.3 percent (6-22) from beyond the arc. The Bears also controlled the glass, maintaining a 48-39 advantage.

St. Joseph's will take on hosts and future Skyline Conference rivals Maritime College tomorrow afternoon at 3 p.m. in the final contest of the Admiral's Classic. Live stats and video for the game can be found on SJCBears.com.