St. Joseph’s Spoils Men’s Basketball’s GNAC Opener, 55-52

BOSTON – Trailing by three with the ball and 20 seconds on the clock, Suffolk men's basketball team had two opportunities to tie the game, but could not connect as Saint Joseph's (Maine) held on for the 55-52 victory in the Rams' GNAC opener Saturday afternoon inside Regan Gymnasium. 

THE BASICS
SCORE: Suffolk 52, St. Joseph's (Maine) 55
RECORDS: Suffolk (1-6, 0-1 GNAC) | St. Joseph's (Maine) (2-3, 2-0 GNAC)

HOW IT HAPPENED
SJC stormed out to a 6-0 lead the blossomed to a 10-4 advantage five minutes into action. Five quick points from the Rams made it a one-point game, but the Monks regained an eight-point edge, 17-9, with 9:05 to play in the first frame. 

Suffolk hung around with SJC, before the visitors used a 6-1 spurt to gain a double-figure edge with just over one minute to play before the half. The Monks outscored the Rams, 4-1, down the stretch to send Suffolk to the locker room down, 35-22. 

Similar to the first half, SJC put the first bucket in the second away to stretch its advantage to 15. Playing catch up, Suffolk used a 7-0 run coupled with a 7-2 stretch over a two minute span to pull within six, 44-38, with 8:40 on the clock. 

The comeback was put on a halt as SJC scored five consecutive points to keep the Rams at a safe distance. The blue and gold stormed back once again thanks to an 11-0 run that made things interesting, 53-52, with 42 seconds to play. 

Quinn Richardson-Newton made a layup with 22 seconds remaining to end the Monks draught and make it a three-point game. Thomas Duffy and Michael Hagopian each put up attempts from behind the arc, but neither connected before time expired and SJC secured the 55-52 conference win. 

STATISTICALLY SPEAKING

• Hagopian paced Suffolk's offense with 12 points to go along with four rebounds and one handout. 
• Duffy recorded nine points, including a perfect 4-for-4 performance from the line. The freshman grabbed six boards, two steals and one assist in a reserve effort. 
• Steven DiPrizio and George Grillakis added seven points apiece. DiPrizio pulled down a team-high eight boards, including five on the offensive end, while Grillakis and Jim Djema, who pitched in six points, tallied seven caroms each. 
• Suffolk struggled from the floor, shooting 28.6 percent (16-56) and from long range, shooting gust 19.2 percent (5-26) from behind the arc. The Rams relied heavily on their 75.0 connection rate from the charity stripe to remain in the contest. 
• The Rams out rebounded the Monks, 34-31, and received 19 points from their reserves. 

POST-GAME PIC

WHAT'S NEXT?
Suffolk is back inside Regan Gymnasium Wednesday, Dec. 7 as the Rams welcome Norwich for a 5 p.m. game.