Hot Shooting Men's Basketball Completes Season Sweep of Third Place Yeshiva

NEW YORK, N.Y. — Seniors Michael Murray (Glendale, N.Y./St. Francis Prep) and Jamir Archer (Staten Island, N.Y./CSI/McCown) each dropped 26 points, Murray setting a new career high, in leading the St. Joseph's College (Brooklyn) men's basketball team to a 92-75 road triumph over Yeshiva on Saturday night, improving the Bears to 9-9 in the Skyline Conference, and completing the season sweep of the Maccabees.

The Basics

• Final Score: St. Joseph's 92, Yeshiva 75
• Records: St. Joseph's (12-10, 9-9 Skyline), Yeshiva (11-8, 9-5 Skyline)
• Date: February 6, 2016
• Location: New York, N.Y.
• Arena: Max Stern Athletic Center
• Starters:
  • St. Joseph's: Parr (G), O'Neill (G), Willis (G), Archer (F), Megafu (F)
  • Yeshiva: Weiss (G), Hod (G), Rosenberg (F), Pienica (F), Berg (F)

Turning Point

• Yeshiva opened the second half with a 10-4 run and trailed just 51-44 with 14:52 remaining. But Matt O'Neill's three-pointer at the 14:37 mark opened an 11-2 response that gave the Bears their double-digit advantage back, one they never relinquished.

How it Happened

• After trading the lead eight times over the opening eight minutes, the Bears used a 12-3 run over 4:39 to build a 29-20 lead at the 7:39 mark. Nolan Parr and Michael Murray both hit trifectas over the spurt and Murray powered with with seven points.
• Despite Micahel Megafu relegated to the bench in foul trouble for most of the first half and leading scorer Matt O'Neill with only four points, Murray and Jamir Archer picked up the slack combining for 30 first-half points, and shooting a combined 77.8 percent leading the team to a 60.6 percent (20-33) connect rate in the period that built a 47-34 lead at the intermission.
• The Bears continued to fire on all cylinders in the second stanza, and while the hosts improved to 51.5 percent shooting (17-33) in the period, the Bears edged them at 53.6 percent (15-28) never letting the Maccabees any closer than seven.
• After Yeshiva cut the deficit to eight, the Bears responded with a quick 8-0 run over 1:21 sparked by an Archer and-one, three points from Megafu and a pair from O'Neill and St. Joseph's had their largest lead of the game at the 12:48 mark, 62-46, and the lead remained in double-figures for the remainder of the contest.
• Yeshiva would cut into the deficit slightly using the deep ball, but the Bears maintained the separation with 78.6 percent (11-14) shooting from the charity stripe in the half, rebuilding as large as a 20-point lead.

For the Bears

• Michael Murray dropped a career-high 26 coming off the bench. The senior made 11-of-16 from the field, including four triples, and added three boards and four assists.
• Senior Jamir Archer also scored 26 on 11-of-16 shooting, adding seven rebounds and a career-best four blocks.
• Matt O'Neill recorded 19 points and 11 boards for his third double-double of the season. The senior added game highs in assists (6) and thefts (4).
• Senior Michael Megafu chipped in 12 points and junior Christian Giles dished six assists in just 18 minutes off the bench.

For the Maccabees

• Shaje Weiss led all scorers with 27 points on an 11-of-14 shooting performance.
• Shelby Rosenberg contributed 12 points, four caroms and a pair of helpers.
• Jamie Cappell added 11 off the bench to round out three in double figures for the Maccabees.

Inside the Box Score

• St. Joseph's was sharp from the floor, hitting 35-of-61 for a season-best 57.4 percent connect-rate.
• The Bears also hit 8-of-18 (44.4%) from beyond the arc and 14-of-18 (77.8%) from the free-throw line to complete an impressive all-around shooting performance.
• In the first half, St. Joseph's shot 60.6 percent from the floor and held the Maccabees to 39.4 percent to build their early double-digit advantage.

The Bear Facts

• The Bears improve to 9-9 in the Skyline Conference and, with just two conference games remaining, sit in a virtual tie with 8-8 SJC Long Island by winning percentage. The nine wins also matches the win total for Yeshiva (9-5) and Purchase (9-7) who sit above the Bears in third and fifth place, respectively.
• St. Joseph's also sweeps the season series with Yeshiva, improving to 2-0 in the brief all-time history that began this year.
• Matt O'Neill needs just three more steals to tie the career SJC theft record.

Next up for St. Joseph's

Following six consecutive Skyline Conference games, the Bears welcome borough rival and former Top 25 Brooklyn College to The Hill Center on Tuesday, February 7 for a 7 p.m. start. Live stats and video will be available on SJCBears.com.