STANDISH, Maine – The University of Saint Joseph (USJ) men's basketball team took care of business on the road, defeating the Saint Joseph's College of Maine Monks, 92-73, in the teams' Great Northeast Athletic Conference (GNAC) opener Saturday afternoon inside the Harold Alfond Center in Standish, Maine. With the victory, the Blue Jays improve to 6-1 overall on the year and 1-0 in GNAC play, while the Monks drop to 2-6 overall and 0-1 in the conference.

HOW IT HAPPENED

• USJ got off to a hot start as senior forward Jalen Samuels (Franklin, Mass.) knocked down a second-chance layup, before senior guard Chaylyn Martin (Hartford Conn.) drained a triple, establishing a quick 5-0 edge inside the opening two minutes.
• The Monks closed the gap to one, 9-8, but senior wing Tyree Mitchell (East Hartford, Conn.) responded with a clutch three-pointer, establishing a six-point edge, 14-8, and forcing the Monks to call a timeout at the 15:10 mark.
• USJ continued to rain threes inside the Harold Alfond Center, as sophomore forward Friedrich Feldrappe (Berlin, Germany) converted on a three of his own, increasing the Blue Jays edge to 17-8.
• The Blue Jays continued to dominate on both sides of the ball, increasing the lead to double-digits, 23-12, after a sophomore guard Lence Altenor (Everett, Mass.) coast-to-coast layup at the 11:58 mark.
• USJ would put the clamps on defensively, holding the Monks scoreless over the next two minutes, as a Samuels layup increased the team's edge to 12, 27-15, with 9:33 left in the half.
• SJC began to fight back, closing the gap to seven, 34-27, but a 7-0 stretch, featuring a three-pointer from junior wing Kevin Cummings (Portsmouth, N.H.), increased the lead to 41-27, as USJ called a timeout at the 4:11 mark.
• USJ continued to pull away late, taking a 51-33 lead into the halftime break.
• The two teams traded buckets to begin the second half, as the Monks used a three-pointer to cut the gap to 14, 56-42, with 17:18 on the clock.
• SJC continued to fight back, closing the deficit to 10, 64-54, with 13:11 left to play.
• However, USJ began to break open the lead, utilizing an 8-0 run, capped off by a layup from freshman forward Ben Carroll (West Haven, Conn.), to hold a 72-54 lead at the 11:03 mark.
• The Blue Jays continued to build upon its lead, jumping back out to a 20-point gap after a Mitchell fast break layup made it 83-59 with 7:25 left to play.
• USJ continued to hold the Monks off for the remainder of the game, taking home the victory, 92-73.

INSIDE THE BOX SCORE 

• Altenor paced the team with a game-high 20 points.
• Samuels, Mitchell and sophomore guard Jonathan Box (Frisco, Texas) joined him in double-figures, scoring 17, 15, and 12 points, respectively.
• Samuels paced the team with six rebounds.
• Box was a playmaking machine, dishing out eight assists.
• USJ shot 55.9 percent from the floor, while holding SJC to a 36.8 percent clip from the field.
• The Blue Jays were just as impressive from deep, shooting 41.2 percent (7-of-17) from beyond the arc.
• The Monks won the battle of the glass, outrebounding the Blue Jays, 36-31.

UP NEXT

The Blue Jays return to the James A. Calhoun Gymnasium for a non-conference matchup against No. 23 Tufts on Wednesday, December 6. Tipoff against the Jumbos is set for 7:00 p.m.

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