STANDISH, Maine – Senior guard Steve Simonds (Steep Falls, Maine/Bonny Eagle) became the 38th player in the 45-year history of the Saint Joseph's College men's basketball program to reach the 1,000-point mark in a 105-104 overtime loss at Anna Maria College on Saturday afternoon.
Five points shy of the milestone entering the game, Simonds surpassed the plateau when he drilled his second three-pointer of the day at the 14:40 mark of the first half. The third-year starter finished the day with a game-high 37 points while shooting 13-19 from the floor and 7-11 from beyond the arc in the closing seconds loss. Simonds also set a career-high in field goals made and tied his career-best in three-pointers made versus the AMCATS.
In the last 17 seasons (a span during which 12 players joined the 1,000-Point Club), no player has scored more points in the game in which they reached the milestone than Simonds' total versus Anna Maria. Senior forward Zach Blodgett (Glenburn, Maine) was credited with an assist on Simonds' 1,000th point bucket.
Simonds currently has 1,032 points over 84 career games - a total that includes 67 starting nods. One of the best sharpshooters in team history, he owns a 46.5% (335-721) field goal percentage along with a 41.8% (193-462) rate from three-point range and an 86.2% (169-196) mark from the charity stripe. He is the Monks' all-time leader in free throw percentage and ranks third in three-point success and fifth in three-pointers made.
The senior guard has also registered 380 rebounds, 192 assists and 70 steals during his career. Simonds has posted eight double-doubles over four seasons, including six this winter.
Simonds leads the Monks in nearly every statistical category this season, including scoring average (22.0), rebounding average (8.0), three-point percentage (49.6%), free-throw percentage (86.8%), field goals made (123), three-pointers made, free throws made (66) and steals. He is also second on the squad in field goal percentage (56.2%) and assists average (3.5).
He currently leads the Great Northeast Athletic Conference (GNAC) in points (374), three-pointers made, three-point percentage and free-throw percentage and ranks second in scoring average with the third-highest rebounding average in the league.
He is the 10th player to join the SJC 1,000-Point Club during the tenure of Head Coach Rob Sanicola '99, who is currently in his 12th year at the helm for the Monks. Simonds joins former teammates Nicholas Jobin '14, Matthew Medeiros '14, Zach O'Brien '12 and Chris Petzy '12 on the exclusive list of Saint Joseph's players who have reached the prestigious plateau.
The feat is particularly impressive considering the fact that he essentially reached the plateau in three seasons, as Simonds scored just 24 points during his freshman campaign, averaging 1.5 PPG in 6.1 minutes of playing time per contest. No member of the Monks' 1,000-Point Club has scored fewer points in their first season and, as a result, Simonds needed 342 points to reach the milestone this season. Only five members of the SJC Club required more points to hit the mark during their senior campaign.
Steve is the son of former SJC Athletic Director Rick Simonds, who posted a 466-176 (.726) career record in 23 seasons (1979-03) as the Monks' head basketball coach. The elder Simonds, who registered 13 20-win seasons with 11 conference titles and six NAIA National Tournament appearances, was inducted into the Saint Joseph's College Athletics Hall of Fame in 2010 and still owns the highest winning percentage in College history with a mark that also ranks sixth all-time in NCAA DIII Basketball history.
Saint Joseph's (8-9, 6-5 GNAC) is set to host GNAC-rival Rivier University at 7:30 PM on Wednesday.
SIMONDS' CAREER STATISTICS:
SIMONDS' 1,000TH POINT SHOT:
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Saint Joseph's College is Maine's only Catholic liberal arts college, providing a supportive, personalized and career-focused education for more than 100 years. From its 430-acre campus on the shores of Sebago Lake, the College offers more than 40 undergraduate programs to a population of approximately 1,000 students. Saint Joseph's College Online provides certificates, undergraduate and advanced degrees for working adults through an online learning program. For more, visit www.sjcme.edu.
