Two Etheart Double-Doubles Not Enough for Men’s Basketball at New Paltz

NEW PALTZ, N.Y. — Brothers Stephane Etheart (Hollis, N.Y./St. Francis Prep) and Sebastien Etheart (Hollis, N.Y./St. Francis Prep) each recorded a double-double, but the St. Joseph's College (Brooklyn) men's basketball team (4-3) fell to SUNY New Paltz, 67-61, on Tuesday night at the Hawk Center.

For Stephane, it was his fifth double-double through seven games this season while Sebastien recorded his first of 2019-20. New Paltz (3-4) led by 12 at the half, but the Bears stormed back to make things close despite the loss.

How It Happened
The Hawks were protecting home court early as a three-pointer from Scott Reisert put them ahead 17-7 just five minutes in. Their lead hung around 10 for the next few minutes until Frank Reali (Staten Island, N.Y./Susan Wagner) nabbed a steal and found Stephane for a fastbreak layup that cut the deficit to six (23-17) with seven minutes to go before intermission.

However, an 8-2 Hawk spurt followed — capped by a Tristan Wissemann layup at 3:18 — for a 13-point edge that held over the final three minutes of the period as New Paltz led 37-25 at the break.

St. Joseph's opened the second with six unanswered points cutting the deficit to six with a lot of time left on the clock. New Paltz responded to nearly all of the Bears' baskets though, maintaining an advantage of at least seven until very late in the game. With SJC down 61-50 at 3:36, they mounted a 7-1 run that brought them within five (1:45).

New Paltz then got to the line on their next three possessions, hitting five-of-six freebies, to go up by double-digits once again and essentially seal the home victory. The Bears held the hosts to 27.6 percent shooting in the second half, but it wasn't enough to come back as they lost their second-straight contest.

For the Bears

• Stephane's double-double consisted of a game-high 21 points (9-14 FG) and 10 boards (two assists, two steals).
• Sebastien put up season highs of 14 points and 11 rebounds on top of five assists and four takeaways.
• Senior forward Kavan Meiner (Staten Island, N.Y./Susan Wagner) rounded out the players in double-figures with 10 points (3-5 FG, 4-5 FT) and five caroms.

Next Up
A trip to Atlanta, Georgia to take part in the Holiday Inn Express Classic facing off against host Oglethorpe University on day one (Dec. 29) with tip set for 4 p.m.