ARLINGTON, Va. – The Marymount (Va.) University men's basketball team saw 11 Saints take the court Saturday afternoon, and all 11 registered points, as it took a second-half lead and held onto it for a 72-62 victory over St. Mary's College of Maryland to remain untouched in Capital Athletic Conference play with a 2-0 tally.
With a tip-in at the buzzer to end the first half, the Seahawks sent the game into the break all knotted up at 28-28, a close-knit trend that played out for the much of the game. It wasn't until five minutes into the second half that the Saints took over the advantage for the final time, as the game saw a total of five ties and three lead changes.
Trailing by two, 38-36, the Saints drew the score even for the final time off a strong inside finish by junior Alex Danko at the 14:56 mark of the second half. On the next series, the momentum continued to build for Marymount following a crowd-roaring and-one finish by senior Michael Anderson on the tough drive and lay-in at the rim.
A few minutes later, St. Mary's would cut the deficit back to two on a layup, but five-straight points on a three-pointer by freshman Josh Giardina followed by a steal and gym-rocking dunk by freshman Ibrahim Kamara ignited the momentum for the rest of the game for the Saints, as they built up a 47-40 lead at the 9:25 mark.
The Seahawks kept the game within single digits all the way until the final minute when Kamara dropped in four-straight free throws to build up the Saints' largest lead of 12 with 24 seconds remaining. Freshman Xavier Adams added another free throw, while Anderson dropped in the final two to seal up the 72-62 home-court victory.
Anderson posted a team-high 14 points for the game, while Kamara and junior Dimitri Ruckerchipped in 12 points apiece. Sophomore Brandon Rogers and Danko each added nine points, while Rucker pulled down a game-high nine boards and Rogers dished out a game-high five assists.
The men will remain at home for their next contest, taking on Southern Virginia University on Wednesday, December 7. Tipoff is set for 8 p.m., in the Verizon Sports Arena.