Pat Jones set career highs in points (31) and rebounds (11) to lead Saint Vincent to a 91-85 victory over the University of Mary Hardin-Baylor in the d3hoops.com Classic at the South Point Casino in Las Vegas.

Jaylon Bell dominated the game early, putting SVC in front 4-0 on a pair of scores in the first 90 seconds.  Jones then hit a jumper that made the score 6-0 before the Crusaders got on the board at the 17:25 mark with a three-pointer.  Bell then hit a three from the corner to run the lead to 9-3, and added a driving underhand layup at the 14:10 mark to make the score 11-5 in favor of the Bearcats.
 
With the score 11-6, Austin Dedert hit a pair of free throws that started an 11-0 Bearcat run.  Dan Sinwell hit a three, then Bobby Swartwout blocked a shot and scored on the other end of the court on a putback.  Jones then scored after a missed UMHB shot, then JC Howard scord on a layup that made it a 22-6 game with just over 11 minutes remaining the half.
 
Later, the Crusaders went on a 5-0 run but Jones hit a three that once again ran the lead to 14 near the nine minute mark of the half, 27-13.  At the 7:31 mark, Matt D'Amico scored on a conventional three-point play, making the score 30-16.
 
The lead stretched to 18 after a bucket by Austin Ford with 6:30 to go (34-16).  Later, Jones added scores on three straight SVC possessions to keep pace with the Crusaders (40-22) with 3:55 on the clock. 
 
Jones continued his hot hand, scoring on a three then hitting Howard on a fast break for a score that made it 47-25 with 1:57 remaining. 

The Crusaders ended the half with a 9-2 run, and the teams went into the locker room with Saint Vincent in front 49-34.
 
SVC shot 56% in the first half compared to just 36% for UMHB, and Saint Vincent held a 24-14 advantage in rebounds through 20 minutes of play.  Jones led all scorers with 16 points in the half, while Bell added 13. 
 
Howard started the scoring in the second half, but the next six minutes belonged to UMHB, as they went on a 14-2 run to cut the SVC advantage to just four, 56-52.  The Bearcats committed 6 turnovers during the run.
 
The advantage was cut to just one, 58-57 with 12:12 remaining in the second half after a Crusader three from the corner, but Dedert and Jones added five quick points for SVC to make it 63-57.  Dedert then added a pair of free throws to keep the run going, but the opponents hit another three with 10:50 left to cut the gap to five, 65-60. 
 
Both teams went cold from the floor over the next two minutes, but SVC hit three free throws during the span to make it a 68-60 game.  The Crusaders tallied the game's next five points to once again cut it to three with just over 7 minutes remaining, as the Bearcats found themselves in foul trouble with four players having four fouls.
 
However, the Bearcats fought right back, with Dedert scoring on a putback, followed by a pair of free throws by Swartwout and a Bell steal and fastbreak score that made it 74-66.  The lead went back to double-digits when Dedert grabbed a rebound and was fouled at the 5:25 mark, hitting both resulting shots.
 
The Crusaders again battled back, scoring on a conventional three-point play with 2:19 left to make the score 80-74, but Ford scored on a putback to run the lead back to eight with 1:51 left.
 
From there, the game went to the foul line, but SVC missed several shots allowing UMHB to cut the gap to four, 86-82, with 35 ticks left, but they could get no closer, as SVC went on to the victory. 

In addition to Jones' first career double-double, Bell added 20 points, while Howard scored 13 and Dedert added 11.  Dedert just missed a double-double of his own with 9 boards, while Swartwout also grabbed 9 rebounds and Ford added 8.

The Bearcats hit 33 free throws in 42 attempts on the night, with Jones going 10-for-10 and Dedert hitting 7-8.  Saint Vincent's 91-point output was the team's highest of the season.

SVC is now 6-2 overall on the season, and will be back in action in Las Vegas on Tuesday, December 29, facing Ramapo College at 7PM Eastern.