PHILADELPHIA – The Cabrini men's basketball team claimed its second straight Colonial States Athletic Conference (CSAC) victory, and its fifth in six games to begin the 2010-11 season, on Saturday afternoon with a convincing 89-62 victory against Philadelphia Biblical University at the historic Palestra. The Cavaliers are 2-0 all-time at the Palestra under third-year head coach Marcus Kahn.
The Cabrini offense boasted four scorers in double figures for the sixth time this season, led by senior forward Dom Farrello's 17-point effort in 15 minutes played off the bench. Farrello shot 7-for-11 overall, including a torrid 3-of-4 clip from 3-point range.
Sophomore center Goran Dulac and freshman forward Fran Rafferty each scored 12 points. Dulac pulled down seven rebounds and shot 5-for-8 overall, benefitting from several nice feeds from Rafferty at the high post. Rafferty handed out three assists and swiped three steals.
Sophomore guard A.J. Williams tallied 10 points, shooting 4-for-8 from the field and knocking down 2-of-4 3-point attempts.
Sophomore point guard Cory Lemons netted four points and gathered five rebounds, but did most of his damage in orchestrating the Cavaliers' attack. Lemons dished a career-high 13 assists, including eight in the first half.
Freshman center Jon Miller posted seven points and corralled five rebounds. Miller's emphatic one-hand flush on the fast-break mid-way through the second half put a stamp on Cabrini's fifth straight victory versus the Crimson Eagles.
The Cavaliers ran out to a 25-8 cushion in the early minutes of the first half and led by 21 points, 45-24, at the intermission. Dulac, Rafferty and Williams each had eight points at the break.
The Blue & White quickly stretched its lead to 29 points, 55-26, at the 16:22 mark of the second half. Farrello's third triple in a two-minute span ballooned the Cabrini advantage to 32 points, 68-36, with 13:15 remaining.
The Cavaliers led by a game-high 37 points, 81-44, at the 6:28 mark.
Cabrini benefitted from 35 points scored off of 27 Philadelphia Biblical turnovers. The Blue & White also out-scored the Crimson Eagles 45-14 off the bench and 48-33 in the paint.
Sophomore guard Adam Derus led four double figures scorers for PBU with 13 points. Freshman forward Jeff Bishop notched a double-double with 12 points and 13 rebounds.
The victory is Cabrini's second in as many tries at Philadelphia's most historic basketball venue, the Palestra. The Cavaliers opened the 2008-09 season with an 85-82 overtime victory against the U.S. Merchant Marine Academy, Kahn's first game at the head of the Blue & White bench.
Cabrini (8-4, 5-1 CSAC) returns to action at CSAC opponent Immaculata University on Wednesday, Jan. 20. Game time against the Mighty Macs is set for 7 p.m.