HOBOKEN, N.J. (January 28, 2011) – Junior forward Simon Smith (Cranford, N.J.) notched his ninth double-double of the season with 17 points and 15 rebounds and the Stevens Institute of Technology men's basketball team improved to 6-3 in the Empire 8 with a 67-57 win over Utica College on Friday night at the Canavan Arena in Hoboken, N.J. Sophomore guard Russ Thompson (West Orange, N.J.) had 17 points and seven assists in a strong effort for the Ducks.

Smith, who has a total of 13 games with double-digit rebounds, added a pair of assists and steals to his line. Thompson had two rebounds and a steal in addition to his 17 points and seven helpers. Junior guard Mike Cutri (West Caldwell, N.J.) ended with nine points and six boards, while sophomore guard Sheldon Jones (Queens, N.Y.) finished with seven points, five rebounds, and two assists.

For the game Stevens shot 41.5 percent (22-for-53) from the field and 37.5 percent (6-for-16) from three-point land. The Ducks were 17-for-24 (70.8 percent) from the free-throw line and ended the game with a 40-26 advantage on the glass.

Utica (8-8 overall, 2-6 Empire 8) shot 40.4 percent (19-for-47) from the field and hit just one of its 10 three-point field goal attempts. The Pioneers were 18-for-23 (78.3 percent) at the line and were led by 16 points, five rebounds, and four assists from senior guard James Paterson (Poughkeepsie, N.Y.). Senior forward Robert Whyte (Pompton Plains, N.J.) had 15 points and five rebounds.

Each team started slow but once the Ducks took the lead at 6-4 with 16:12 left, they would never let it go, quickly upping that two point edge to 10 with 13:06 remaining in the first half after a fast-break dunk from Smith.

The Pioneers scored the game's next six points to trim the margin to four (16:12) with 11:21 left in the half, but the Ducks fired back, going on a 9-1 run over a span of 2:58 to push the advantage to 12. On several occasions Utica was able to get the game back to single digits, but the Ducks eventually took a 12-point lead into the locker room.

Senior center Bryan Franklin (Highlands Ranch, Colo.) gave Stevens its largest lead of the game (14 points) after two free throws early in the second and the two teams went back-and-forth over the next five-plus minutes as the Ducks were unable to deliver the knockout punch.

Utica sliced into the Stevens lead on several occasions, getting as close as five twice (49-44 and 53-48) but the Ducks always seemed to find a big shot. Up 53-48, with 4:21 showing on the clock, Thompson buried a long three from the right wing to push the lead back to eight, and after a Utica bucket on the next possession, a Smith tip-in following a battle underneath took the wind out of the Pioneer sails and Stevens cruised to the win.

Stevens, now 12-5 overall and 6-3 in the conference, is one game behind Ithaca College and St. John Fisher College who are both 7-2 in the league and a half game behind Hartwick College who is 6-2.

The Ducks return to the hardwood on February 1 at 7:30 p.m. when they travel to the College of Staten Island for non-conference contest.