HAMBURG, N.Y. – The Hilbert College men's basketball team returned to action today playing their first game of the new year and the twenty-one days off from competition showed early in the contest.
The Hawks used a 16-0 run in the second half to take control and coasted to a 74-60 non-conference win over Keystone College (5-4). Nick Nadeau shot 7-of-11 from the floor and earned his first career double/double scoring 16 points and grabbing 10 rebounds while Jalen Smith matched game-high scoring honors with 16 points, hitting 6-of-9 shots at the foul line.
Jerame Owens was credited with his fifth consecutive double/double (sixth for season, sixteenth for career) giving his team 12 points and 13 rebounds and Ryan Brewster chipped in a career-high 10 points.
DaVaughn Thomas' 13 points led three Giants who reached for double-figures.
The Hawks (7-2) dominated the glass, out-rebounding Keystone by 21 and they tripled the visitors on the offensive boards (25-7). Hilbert lived at the foul line attempting 36 shots after the Giants were whistled for twice as many fouls than Hilbert (27-14).
Keystone was a consistent 38.7%-shooting team, sinking 12 shots each half (24-62) while Hilbert struggled from the field making 24 of their 75 attempts (3 of 24 from beyond the arc).
Hilbert outlasted Keystone during the first twenty-minutes, which produced 6 lead changes and eight ties; the Hawks took a 33-30 lead to the locker room. Nadeau was 4-of-5 and matched team-high rebounding honors with Xavier Major (4) as 11 Hawks filled the stat-sheet before the break.
The second half played much like the first half ended. Hilbert controlled the pace of the game and built their first double-digit lead by 13:18 (44-34) before the Giants sliced the lead back to three working through a 7-0 run (46-43).
Over the next ninety-five seconds, Hilbert responded by scoring 16-unanswered points to put the game out of hand. Nadeau was credited with 7 points and Smith added 5 in the run that gave Hilbert a 62-43 lead.
During that same time frame, Keystone reached the 10-foul limit which gave the hosts two free throw attempts after each foul with 8:40 left in the game. Hilbert struggled at the line, sinking only 8 of their 16 attempts before the final horn.
Hilbert returns to action January 8 when they travel to Buffalo for their first meeting against AMCC league and cross-town rival D'Youville College. Don't forget, the men's game begins at 6pm in the AMCC double header this season.