Old Westbury, N.Y. – Junior Omonya Onwe (Staten Island, N.Y.) led five College of Mount Saint Vincent players in double-figures with a game-high 24 points, as the Dolphins cruised to a 96-76 win at Old Westbury on Thursday night. Onwe has led the Dolphins in scoring in each of the six games this season and is posting an even 22.0 points per game.
Old Westbury (1-2, 1-1 Skyline) opened up a seven point lead early in the contest following an Andre Martin jumper with 14:23 left in the first half. From the point, the Mount used a 15-8 spurt to tie the score at 23-23 after a Joe Ecock (Brooklyn, N.Y.) triple with 7:41 left in the half.
The Dolphins would grab their first lead of the game after a free-throw from Chris Bonaventura (Staten Island, N.Y.) at the 6:50 mark of the first half, but the home standing Panthers would regain the advantage and open up a lead as large as five points after a Lester Prosper jumper with just over four minutes left before the half.
Following the Prosper bucket, the Mount would run out on a 12-4 run to close the half and gain a lead it would no give up the rest of the night. Senior Alvin Pegues (Brooklyn, N.Y.) started the run with a layup and would end it at the horn with another lay-in to send the Dolphins to the locker room with a 40-32 advantage.
Although Old Westbury shot better then 51-percent in the opening period, the Mount converted four three-point field goals and scored 23 points off of turnovers to secure the lead. Eight different Mount Saint Vincent players scored before the half, with Pegues and Onwe leading the way with nine points apiece.
The Dolphins expanded their lead to 10 points in the opening moments of the second half, before Old Westbury would put together a run to cut its deficit to four points with just over 16 minutes left in regulation time. Over the next seven minutes the Dolphins would put the game away with a 27-8 run to take a 23 point lead with 9:14 left in the contest. Junior Cody Gauvard (Rockaway, N.Y.) capped the run with a three-pointer to put the Mount in front 71-48.
After the Gauvard triple Old Westbury would not be able to get the game under 15 points and five free-throws by three different players in the final 1:08 secured the road win for the Mount.
Onwe finished the game 10-for-21 from the floor on his way to 24 points and also grabbed eight rebounds and secured three steals. Pegues finished the night with 15 points and five rebounds, while Gauvard also posted 15 points and added a team-high five assists. Dino Johnson (Fort Johnson, N.Y.) added 12 points and three steals.
The Mount Saint Vincent bench again played an important role on Thursday, outscoring that from Old Westbury 27-16. Sophomore George Naldjieff (Miami, Fla.) came off the bench to net 10 points, secure four rebounds and swipe a pair of steals in 18 minutes of work.
Overall in the game, Mount Saint Vincent shot 48.6-percent from the floor and just under 44-percent from behind the arc. The Dolphins also shot a season-high 80.8-percent from the free-throw line, converting 21 of their 26 chances. Mount Saint Vincent also made a living off of opponent miscues, forcing 28 turnovers and converting those into 41 points.
Old Westbury also placed four in double-figures, with Prosper posting 19 points and a game-high 14 rebounds. The Panthers shot just under 41-percent from the floor overall, but made just one three-pointer in 14 chances.
The win pushes Mount Saint Vincent to 6-0 overall and to 3-0 in league play. The Dolphins will look to extend their winning streak at home on Saturday night when they host Yeshiva. Tip-off with the Maccabees is set for 8:00 p.m. at the Peter Jay Sharp Center.