Men's Basketball Loses Nailbiter to Undefeated Mount Saint Vincent

BROOKLYN, N.Y. – The St. Joseph's College (Brooklyn) men's basketball team suffered their second loss of the season on Thursday night, dropping a hard-fought road contest 82-79 to undefeated Mount Saint Vincent.

Junior Michael Megafu (Jamaica, N.Y./Nazareth Regional) led all Bears scorers with 21 points and corralled a season-high 17 rebounds, with 10 of them coming on the offensive end. Senior David Louison (Brooklyn, N.Y./St. Edmund Prep) kept his double-double streak alive, securing 15 points and equaling his season-high with 18 boards to extend the impressive streak to seven games.

Matt O'Neill (Brooklyn, N.Y./St. Edmund Prep) contributed a 19-point effort and once again displayed his hot-hand from beyond the arc, connecting on 4-of 8 from downtown. The junior also finished with a game-high three thefts.

Rounding out four Bears (5-2) in double-figures, senior Vernon Maddox (Staten Island, N.Y./St. Peter's) added 16 points and a game-high four helpers. Freshman Alec Willis (Staten Island, N.Y./St. Joseph by the Sea) reached a season-high eight points helped by a pair of triples.

Mount Saint Vincent (5-0) seniors James Zuccaro and Antonio Johnson led the Dolphins with 20 points apiece. Zuccaro hit 3-of-5 from beyond the arc and secured seven boards while Johnson reached team-highs in assists (3) and steals (2).

The first-half belonged to St. Joseph's as MSV was kept in check from the three-point line, connecting on just 3-of-15. The Bears also outrebounded the Dolphins 26-18 and held a 44-35 lead after the intermission.

A trifecta from Willis at the 16:13 mark gave St. Joseph's a commanding 11-0 lead less than four minutes into play.

The Bears led by as many as 16 points in the first stanza but the Dolphins finished the half on an 11-4 run to draw closer before the break.

MSV exploded out of the gates in the second, burying four consecutive three-pointers in a span of 2:18 to claim a 47-44 lead, their first of the game.

The Dolphins stretched their advantage to double-digits after a triple from freshman Matthew Sowah made the score 61-50 with 12:21 remaining.

O'Neill's second consecutive three at the 10:16 mark cut Mount Saint Vincent's lead to 61-58, capping off a quick 8-0 run for the Bears.

In the waning minutes, Louison converted on a three-point play that capped off a 5-0 run to make it a one-possession game for St. Joseph's, cutting the deficit to 76-74 with just 2:39 left.

As the teams battled for control in the final minute, O'Neill drained a clutch three-pointer, his fourth of the night, with 48 seconds remaining to make it a one-point game.

Zuccaro's jumper gave MSV an 82-79 advantage with 15 seconds remaining. O'Neill was given an opportunity to test his hot-hand and send the game to overtime, but his contested three-point attempt at the buzzer rimmed out.

Mount Saint Vincent buried 7-of-12 threes in the second-half to complete the comeback win. Both teams were efficient from beyond the arc, with the Dolphins finishing the game with a 37 percent (10-27) connect rate and the Bears hitting 41.2 percent (7-17).

As usual, St. Joseph's managed to control the glass (49-38), but they were unable to overcome the Dolphins' three-point barrage in the second stanza.

The Bears will look to bounce back this weekend as they travel to New London, Conn. for the Citizens Bank Tournament. They'll open up play at Connecticut College on Saturday, December 6 with an 8 p.m. tipoff. Live stats and video can be found at SJCBears.com.