Riverdale, N.Y. – Senior James Zuccaro (Gilbert, Ariz.) led all players with 27 points and freshman Matthew Sowah (Staten Island, N.Y.) netted a career-high 11 points as the College of Mount Saint Vincent Men's Basketball team swept the season series from league rival Farmingdale State with a 61-45 home win on Saturday afternoon.
The Dolphins led wire-to-wire on Saturday afternoon, jumping out to a 15-4 lead on an Ammad Alkhulaidi (Brooklyn, N.Y.) jumper with 13:26 left in the first half.
The Rams would slice the disadvantage to four points on a Anthony Lanieri three-pointer, before the Mount responded with a 10-1 run capped by a Jamir Ferebee (Staten Island, N.Y.) triple that pushed the Dolphins in front 25-12 with 6:24 left before halftime.
Mount Saint Vincent allowed Farmingdale State to climb to within seven points twice late in the first half, but four straight points from Zuccaro in the final 1:03 of the half gave the Dolphins a 31-20 halftime advantage.
The Mount shot an even 40-percent from the floor in the opening period and was led by eight points from Zuccaro who went 3-for-5 from the floor. Sowah came off the bench to add seven points for the Dolphins, adding three rebounds.
Freshman Kyle Beckmann (New City, N.Y.) started a quick 7-0 run to open the second half with a three-pointer as the run gave the Dolphins a game-high 18 points lead, at 38-20, with 17:44 remaining in regulation time.
Farmingdale State would not be able to get its disadvantage under double-figures in the second half, getting as close as 10 points on a Leland Williams conversion with 12:47 left in the frame.
Mount Saint Vincent quickly spread the lead back to 16 with a 6-0 spurt led by four points from Zuccaro, who buried a three-pointer in the final half minute of play to close the second half with 19 points and give the Dolphins the final 16 point advantage.
Zuccaro went 9-for-14 from the floor in the second half and finished the game 12-for-19 overall to go along with nine rebounds, three blocks and a pair of steals. In two games against the Rams this season, Zuccaro has averaged 27 points and nine rebounds, going 22-for-34 from the floor.
Sowah finished the day 5-for-9 from the floor and hauled in four rebounds and swiped three steals. Alkhulaidi matched the team-high with nine rebounds in the game with Antonio Johnson (Fort Johnson, N.Y.) rounding out the day with four assists and seven points.
The Dolphins shot 44.1-percent from the floor in the win and held the visitors to a 31.1-percent effort from the field. The Rams misfired on eight free-throws in the game, with the Mount going 3-for-3 on the day from the charity stripe.
Saturday's win moves Mount Saint Vincent to 7-2 overall and to 3-0 in league play. The Dolphins, who are off to their best start in league play since starting 5-0 in 2010-11, will close out a three game home stand on Wednesday when they welcome Sage to the Peter Jay Sharp Center. Tip-off with the Gators is set for 7:00 p.m.