ALFRED, N.Y. (February 4, 2011) – Junior forward Simon Smith (Cranford, N.J.) notched his 11th double-double of 2010-11, tallying 24 points and 12 rebounds as the Stevens Institute of Technology men's basketball improved to 7-3 in the Empire 8 with a 80-56 win over Alfred University on Friday night at the McClane Center. Four Ducks ended the game in double figures and the team shot 63.0 percent (17-for-27) in the second half.

Smith went 9-for-12 from the floor and 6-for-8 from the free-throw line in tallying his 24 points. Three of his 12 boards were on the offensive end as the junior added a steal and an assist to his line. Junior guard Mike Cutri (West Caldwell, N.J.) had 13 points and six rebounds, and sophomore guard Sheldon Jones (Queens, N.Y.) poured in 12 points, handed out three assists, and pulled down two rebounds. Freshman forward Patrick Sabatino (Westfield, N.J.) finished with 10 points, four rebounds, and a block.

Stevens was 34-for-62 (54.8 percent) from the field, 4-for-10 from three, and 8-for-12 (66.7 percent) from the line. The Ducks (14-5 overall, 7-3 Empire 8) ended the game with a 46-26 rebounding advantage, totaling 16 offensive boards that turned into 24 second-chance points.

The Ducks jumped out early and never really looked back in this one, leaping to a 15-5 lead before five minutes had elapsed in the first half. The Saxons were able to trim the lead to five at 19-14, but the Ducks ran off seven-straight points to up the margin to 12 midway through the first period. Stevens took a 16-point lead (34-18) following a Cutri layup with 7:19 to go in the first half, but a 15-4 run by the Saxons closed the gap to four (40-36) by the end of the half.

Alfred (7-12 overall, 2-8 Empire 8) cut the Duck lead to three following a jumper from sophomore center Bryan Bobo (Ontario, N.Y.), but the Ducks proceeded to embark on a 20-4 run over the next 8:06 of game time to open up a 63-44 lead with 9:50 to play. Smith tallied 12 of the 20 Stevens points in the game-changing spurt.

The Saxons were able to get within 15 points (67-52) at the 5:54 mark, but the Ducks blew the game open, taking a 25-point lead (77-52) with 2:06 left and eventually winning by the 80-56 final.

Stevens led for the entire 40 minutes and held Alfred to 37.7 percent (23-for-61) shooting. The Saxons connected on just 24.0 percent of their three-point field goals. Alfred was led by 12 points from senior guard Mike Stopera (Scotia, N.Y.) and 10 from Bobo.

Stevens will return to the hardwood on Saturday night at St. John Fisher College. Tip-off is slated for 8 p.m. and the game will be webcast live at www.PennAtlantic.com.