PATCHOGUE, N.Y. — Senior Michael Megafu (Jamaica, N.Y./Nazareth Regional) recorded his 50th career double-double with 15 points and a game-high 18 rebounds leading three in double figures, but the St. Joseph's College (Brooklyn) men's basketball team couldn't overcome a poor second-half shooting effort as sibling rivals St. Joseph's College (Long Island) pulled away for a 72-66 victory in the first Skyline Conference meeting between the two campuses on Tuesday night.
The Basics
- Final Score: SJC Long Island 72, SJC Brooklyn 66
- Records: SJC Long Island (3-5, 2-1 Skyline), SJC Brooklyn (4-3, 3-2 Skyline),
- Date: December 8, 2015
- Location: Patchogue, N.Y.
- Arena: Danzi Athletic Center
- Starters:
- SJC-BK: Murray (G), O'Neill (G), Willis (G), Archer (F), Megafu (F)
- SLC-LI: Laurent (G), Cohen (G), Spann (F), Moore (F), Vazquez (F)
Turning Point
- The Golden Eagles outscored the Bears 11-4 over the final 2:33, draining a trio of three-pointers to bring about the 14th lead change of the game and carried it to the final buzzer.
How it Happened
- The Bears used an early 12-2 run over five minutes to pull ahead 15-6, the largest separation of the contest.
- Long Island trimmed the deficit to two before Brooklyn pushed the lead back up to nine again, 28-19, on a Joe Idyahia trifecta and a Michael Megafu layup. But a late Golden Eagle surge in the final minute of the half saw the Bears lead dwindle to 32-30 heading into the lockers.
- A Fernando Vazquez three-ball to open the new period gave the lead back to the hosts and the teams traded the lead throughout the period, neither able to build more than a four-point cushion.
- Trailing by four, a Matt O'Neill trifecta cut the deficit to one with 1:48 to play, but Long Island responded with a Stephen Cohen triple and Brooklyn missed their final five attempts finishing the half shooting just 31 percent (11-35) while the hosts connected at a 60 percent rate (15-25).
For the Bears
- Matt O'Neill scored a team-high 16 points, draining three trifectas, dishing out four assists and pulling down three rebounds.
- Michael Megafu recorded his fifth double-double of the season with 15 points and 18 rebounds, also dishing out four assists.
- Jamir Archer fell one point shy of his career high with 15 points, sinking 5-of-5 from the charity stripe, and securing eight caroms.
- Joseph Idyahia came off the bench to shoot 3-of-6 en route to a career-high tying eight points, also swiping three steals.
For the Golden Eagles
- Skyline leading scorer Andy Laurent netted a game-high 22 points on 7-of-16 shooting, and 5-of-11 from distance, also dishing out five assists in 39 minutes of action.
- Fernando Vazquez added 17 points and four assists.
- Stephen Cohen chipped in 12 points and six boards rounding out three in double-figures.
Inside the Box Score
- Brooklyn led for the majority of the game (24:00) in the game that saw three ties and 14 lead changes.
- The Bears won the battle of the boards, 42-36 and controlled the offensive glass (16-3) to maintain a 14-3 edge in second chance scoring.
- Long Island forced 14 Brooklyn turnovers, matching their season worst. The Bears lead the Skyline in fewest turnovers and turnover differential.
- The Bears entered the game the Skyline leader in steals (9.7) but were held to a season-low five thefts.
The Bear Facts
- Megafu records his 50th career double-double in his 89th game played and is the Division III active leader in the category.
- Long Island pulls ahead 3-5 in the series and snaps a three-game Brooklyn streak.
- The Bears and Golden Eagles will meet again on Thursday, January 7, 2016 in The Hill Center to close out the home-and-home series.
Next up for St. Joseph's
The Bears return home to The Hill Center welcoming Farmingdale State on Thursday, December 10 opening a Skyline doubleheader with the women. Tip-off is slated for 5:30 p.m. with live stats and video available on SJCBears.com