NEWTON, Mass. -- Junior Darian Berry (Rochester, N.H.) scored 21 points, including five three-pointers, and grabbed six rebounds to lead Saint Joseph's (Maine) to a 76-70 Great Northeast Athletic Conference men's basketball victory over Mount Ida Tuesday evening at the Athletic Center.
The visiting Monks (12-7, 7-3 GNAC) opened the game on a 12-3 run in the first five-plus minutes of action, and after the host Mustangs (9-11, 3-8 GNAC) closed back to within five on a lay-in by sophomore Kevin Vanderhorst (Lawrence, Mass.) just over three minutes later, Saint Joseph's extended its edge to 14 points on a three-pointer by junior Ian Mileikis (Auburn, Maine) before settling for a 41-31 advantage at the break.
The visitors scored 10 of the first 12 points after intermission to take their largest lead of the night (51-33) on a Mileikis lay-in with 16:25 remaining, and the Monks maintained that double-digit edge until Mount Ida crept back to within five (64-59) with 5:49 to play with a 20-4 run sparked by 12 points from Vanderhorst. Saint Joseph's jumped back to a 10-point advantage (70-60) on a three-pointer by freshman Tatsuaki Sakai (Ishikawa, Japan) just 1:42 later, but the Mustangs made one last run to cut their deficit to four (74-70) on a three-pointer by senior Joey DeFillippi (Bristol, Conn.) with 47 seconds remaining. Both squads traded missed treys in the closing seconds of action, as a pair of free throws from senior Quinn Richardson-Newton (Saco, Maine) with nine seconds left iced the Monks' triumph.
Mileikis collected 14 points, nine rebounds, six assists and five steals in the win for Saint Joseph's, which received 13 points and eight boards from freshman Jack Casale (Portland, Maine). Junior Jae Johns (Lindenhurst, N.Y.) was also in double figures with 11 points for the Monks, who received seven points and seven boards from Richardson-Newton to go with six points from Sakai. Senior Aaron Hall (Haverhill, Mass.) grabbed eight caroms for the visitors, who shot 41 percent (27-66) from the field overall and connected for 10 three-pointers on the evening, as Saint Joseph's held a 47-42 rebounding advantage while recording 21 assists in completing a regular season series sweep of the hosts.
Vanderhorst notched his sixth double-double performance of the season with 27 points and 11 boards in the setback for Mount Ida, which received 12 points, four steals, three rebounds and three assists from DeFillippi. Senior John Oliver (North Babylon, N.Y.) added 11 points, five assists, four boards and three steals for the hosts, while fellow senior Jayson Clark (Austin, Tex.) became the 12th member of the Mustang 1,000 Point Club in finishing with 10 points, six rebounds, four assists and a pair of steals. Mount Ida shot 39 percent (26-66) from the floor overall but connected on just 3-of-18 attempts from behind the arc for the contest, as the Mustangs turned 19 Monk turnovers into 23 points.
Mount Ida hosts Lasell in a Great Northeast Athletic Conference clash on Saturday afternoon at the Athletic Center that tips-off at 3:00 p.m., while Saint Joseph's heads to Providence, R.I. on Thursday evening to square off with Johnson & Wales in a GNAC outing beginning at 7:00 p.m.
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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 474-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.