ST. MARY'S CITY, MD – The York College men's basketball team earned an 88-74 Capital Athletic Conference road win on Wednesday night as the Spartans earned their 16th win to open the season.
The Spartans, who are ranked 4th in the most recent d3hoops.com poll, improve to 9-0 in the CAC as they will maintain their two game lead over Salisbury and three game margin over Christopher Newport. The 16 straight wins continues to increase the current school record for consecutive wins and wins to start a season.
Game #16
Records: #4 York 16-0 (9-0 CAC), St. Mary's 3-13 (2-7 CAC)
Final Score: York 88, SMC 74
Field Goals: York 31-for-59, SMC 25-for-50
Field Goal %: York 52.5%, SMC 50%
Three Point FG: York 8-for-21, SMC 7-for-20
Three Point FG %: York 38.1%, SMC 35%
Free Throws: York 18-for-22, SMC 17-for-23
Free Throw %: York 81.8%, SMC 73.9%
Rebounds: York 29, SMC 29
Assists: York 20, SMC 13
Blocked Shots: York 2, SMC 3
Steals: York 13, SMC 6
How It Happened
• The Seahawks jumped all over the Spartans from the start as St. Mary's blitzed York with an 8-0 run in the first two minutes of the game. The Green and White answered with an 8-0 run of their own to tie the game at eight. Jason Bady and Jared Wagner each had four points during the spurt for York. The Seahawks pushed back out to a 13-10 lead but York ripped off a 14-0 run as the Spartan lead grew to 11 with 10:14 left in the first.
• With York leading 26-15, the Seahawks fashioned a 17-5 run of their own, turning the 11-point deficit into a one point lead with 3:46 left in the opening half. The Spartans regained their balance, and their lead, as Joey Polczynski converted a three-point play to put York back on top. York would have to be satisfied with a 41-39 lead heading to the break.
• The opening minutes of the second half went back and forth as each team answered the other on the scoreboard. The Spartan lead bounced between one and six points until Blayde Reich hit a lay up followed by a Wagner lay up and a Bady three as York pushed out to a 67-54 lead with 11:14 left in the game.
• The Spartan lead grew to as many as 24 as Darin Gordon hit a three pointer followed by a pair of free throws on the ensuing possession to take a 24 point (82-58) lead. The Seahawks would end the game on a 8-0 run over the final 2:48 to make the score appear much closer than it really was in the Spartan win.
• York outscored St. Mary's 47-35 in the second half as the Green and White shot a blistering 59.2% (16-for-27) from the floor in the second half.
Spartan Leaders
Blayde Reich: 25 points, 4 rebounds, 2 assists, 1 blocked shot, 1 steal, 11-for-18 FG
Jared Wagner: 15 points, 3 rebounds, 5 assists, 3 steals
Joey Polczynski: 15 points, 4 rebounds, 2 assists, 1 steal
Jason Bady: 11 points, 5 rebounds, 5 assists, 4 steals
Darin Gordon: 13 points, 1 rebound, 1 blocked shot, 1 steal, 3-for-3 3PT FG, 4-for-4 FT
St. Mary's Leaders
Matt Ayoub: 22 points, 1 rebound, 2 assists, 1 steal, 4-for-7 3PT FG, 6-for-7 FG
Ochae Bynum: 13 points, 1 rebound, 3 assists, 1 steal
Jamel Murphy: 12 points, 4 rebounds, 2 blocked shots, 6-for-6 FG
Game Notes:
The Spartans improve to 43-24 all-time against the Seahawks as the Spartans have won three straight against St. Mary's … York shot over 50% from the floor for the eighth time this year and it was also the third game in a row they reached that plateau … York shot over 35% from three for the ninth time this season … the Spartans' 81.8% mark from the free throw line is the second time this year they have been over 80% in a game … the 29 rebounds for the Spartans are the second lowest total of the year (27 vs. Harrisburg on January 10) … York recorded 13 steals and that's the fifth time they have been in double figures this season … York held a 44-30 advantage in paint points in the win … York tallied 28 points off 21 St. Mary's turnovers … sophomore Joey Polczynski was outstanding in the win as he recorded a career-high 15 points as he was 6-for-10 from the floor, 2-for-5 from three and 1-for-1 from the line … sophomore Darin Gordon just missed his career high as he tallied a season-high 13 points … Gordon was 3-for-3 from three and 4-for-4 from the free throw line … the three threes and the four free throws ties his career high in both categories … sophomore Jared Wagner tallied 15 points and that's the sixth straight game in double figures and the 11th time for the year … Wagner dished out five assists and that's the ninth time he's done that in 2017-18 … junior Jason Bady continued his streak of great play as the guard had 11 points, five rebounds, five assists and four steals in a stat sheet stuffer game … Bady has reached double figures in four straight games and in six of his last seven games … Bady has grabbed at least five rebounds in 10 games while his four steals marks the fourth time this year he has gotten four or more in a game … Bady's five assists is the fourth time he has gotten five or more helpers in a game … senior Blayde Reich put another notch in his already impressive resume as he led all scorers with 25 points … Reich was an efficient 11-for-18 from the floor including 1-for-3 from three and 2-for-4 from the line … Reich reached the 20 point mark for the sixth time this year as he has been in double figures in 15 of his 16 games this year … Reich now has 972 points as he is closing in on becoming the 24th member of the 1,000 career point club … Reich played a team-high 34 minutes in the win … York is one of just four unbeaten teams in all of Division III.
Up Next:
The Spartans continue their three game road trip with a trek to Fredericksburg, Virginia to face the University of Mary Washington in a key Capital Athletic Conference contest. The Spartans edged the Eagles 64-61 in a tightly played conference contest on December 6 in York.