HIRAM, Ohio (Nov. 15) - The Saint Vincent men's basketball team opened the 2016-17 season with a 93-71 loss to Hiram College at Price Gymnasium in Ohio. 
 
Sophomore guard Mike Simmons gave SVC a 2-0 lead with a layup to start the contest. After Hiram drained a three pointer, junior forward Austin Dedert used an offensive rebound and tip-in to put the Bearcats in front 4-3.
 
Junior transfer Jason Capco drained a jumper and Coy Patterson Jr. added a free throw, to push the Bearcats' advantage to 7-3 with 17:04 left in the opening half.
 
SVC continued to hold a narrow lead early on, as Austin Ford converted a layup to make it 9-6 at the 16:00 minute mark. The host Terriers would score five of the next seven points to tie the game at 11-11 with 13:25 left in the half.
 
Sophomore Malique McLaren and freshman Josh Duda connected on back-to-back three pointers to push the SVC lead to 17-11 with 11:58 left in the first half. After Hiram answered with a 5-0 run, Tom Kromka hit back-to-back buckets for SVC, making it 21-18 at the 9:26 mark.

That is when Hiram would take control, using a 10-0 run to take a 28-21 edge, as the Bearcats were kept off the scoreboard for three-plus minutes. D'Amico finally stopped the drought with a layup, drawing SVC to within five (28-23) with 6:03 left first half.
 
The Terriers would then add 12 more unanswered points, giving SVC its largest deficit of the first half at 17 points (40-23). Hiram would continue to hold a double-digit lead for the remainder of the half. Duda would bring SVC within 12 points within a three-pointer to close the first half scoring with Hiram leading 46-34. 

SVC started strong in the second half, as an early 8-4 run helped the Bearcats back into a single-digit deficit. Sparking the run was Simmons, who drilled a three-pointer and a fastbreak layup, making it 50-42 with 17:22 left. After Hiram split a pair of free throws, the SVC comeback continued when Capco and McLaren nailed back-to-back 3s, drawing the Bearcats within three at 51-48 at the 16:12 mark. 

Less than three minutes later, Ford knocked down a pair of free throws, bringing the Bearcats deficit to just a single point (54-53) with 13:50 left. Hiram countered back with six straight points, making it 60-53. Later on, back-to-back layups by Duda and Kromka brought SVC to within a basket at 62-60 with 10 minutes left. 

However, Saint Vincent could get no closer and Hiram started to build a big lead the rest of the way. Hiram out-scored SVC 18-4 over the next three plus minutes to take control at 80-64 with 6:14 to play. Hiram added a 10-1 run to see its lead swell to its largest of the night, 90-65 with 2:08 left. 

Duda led the Bearcats with a team-high 14 points in his collegiate debut. Capco added 11 points and four assists, while Simmons rounded out the trio of Bearcats in double-digits with 10 points. Ford pulled down a team-best seven rebounds. 

As a team, SVC shot 41 percent (25-61) from the field and knocked down 10-of-19 three pointers. Hiram connected on 61 percent of field goal attempts (36-of-59). Kelvin Jones posted a double-double for the Terriers with 19 points and 10 rebounds.

Saint Vincent returns to action by taking on York College at the Franklin & Marshall Tournament in Lancaster on Friday, Nov. 18. Tip-off is slated for 5:30 p.m.