ORLANDO, Fla. (Dec. 19) – A strong second half led Hope College to a 91-74 over the Saint Vincent men's basketball team at the RDV Sportsplex Ice Den in Orlando.
The Bearcats went back and forth with the Flying Dutchmen for the majority of the contest. However, fast starts to each half ultimately led Hope to the victory.
Hope, a perennial power from the Michigan Intercollegiate Athletic Association and a NCAA Sweet 16 team from a season ago, earned the win to snap a two game losing skid.
A slow start from SVC offensively allowed Hope to build an early 14-3 lead at the 14:30 mark of the first half. The lead would swell to as many as 12 points for the Flying Dutchmen, as they took an 18-6 lead with 12:15 to play in the first half.
However, Saint Vincent cranked up the defensive intensity and worked itself back into the game. A layup by Tom Kromka and an old fashioned three-point play by Matt D'Amico helped SVC cut the deficit to 20-14 with 10:15 left to play in the half.
After Hope split a pair of free throws made it 21-14, SVC would use an 11-2 run to take its first lead of the game at 25-23 with 6:43 left in the half. Mike Simmons started the run with a three pointer from the top of the key then was capped by Jason Capco layup.
A little later in the half, D'Amico drained a pair of free throws to give Saint Vincent a 35-32 advantage with 59 seconds left in the half. However, Hope would close with back-to-back baskets by Dante Hawkins to take a 36-35 halftime lead over SVC.
Both teams shot the ball well in the first half, as Hope converted 50 percent from the field while SVC converted at a 46.2 clip over the first 20 minutes. D'Amico led SVC with nine points while Coy Patterson Jr. chipped in six assists.
Like they did in the first half, Hope opened strong in the second half, using a 16-6 run over the first four plus minutes to take a 52-42 lead with 15:24 to play. SVC would counter with a 15-9 run to cut the deficit to 63-57 with nine minutes to play.
A three-pointer by Josh Duda cut the Hope lead to 66-60 with eight minutes left. However, Hope would counter back with six points to stretch the lead back into double figures at 72-60.
Patterson tried to will Saint Vincent back, sparking an 8-0 run with six free throws, cutting the deficit to 72-68 with 5:36 to play. Hope closed the game on a 19-6 run to put away the win.
Patterson finished 14 points, seven assists and six rebounds to lead the Bearcats in the loss. D'Amico (13), Shemar Bennett (12) and Kromka (10) all joined Patterson in double figures in scoring. Hope had five players finish in double figures led by Jason Beckman with 21 points.
The loss drops SVC to 6-3 overall, while Hope moves to 4-4.
Saint Vincent concludes its Florida trip with a battle against Baldwin Wallace on Wednesday, Dec. 20. The Yellow Jackets will provide the Bearcats with another non-conference test, as they sit at 6-2 overall and were ranked in the D3hoops.com Top 25 poll earlier this season. Tip-off is slated for 7:30 p.m.