STANDISH, Maine – Saint Joseph's College (10-13, 4-5 GNAC) outlasted Regis College (7-16, 3-6 GNAC), 83-80, in a Great Northeast Athletic Conference (GNAC) men's basketball contest at the Harold Alfond Center on Saturday afternoon.
HOW IT HAPPENED:
Trailing 12-6 with 13:31 remaining in the first half, Regis delivered 13 unanswered points over a four-minute span and proceeded to hold at least a share of the lead until intermission, as the conference rivals headed into the break tied 36-36.
Saint Joseph's opened the second stanza with 20-10 run as junior guard Jack Casale (Portland, Maine/Cheverus) capped the outbreak with a layup and his team on top, 56-46, with 11:13 remaining.
The Monks maintained no less than a two-possession advantage and held a 78-69 lead after sophomore guard Nicholas Curtis (Windham, Maine) drilled a three with 3:08 left. The Pride quickly fought back into contention by scoring 10 of the game's following 13 points and faced an 81-79 deficit after junior forward Marc Trinidad (Bronx, N.Y.) converted a layup with 19 seconds left.
St. Joe's left the door open for Regis by going 3-for-6 from the FT line in the closing seconds and, trailing 83-80 with :03 on the clock, had a chance to tie the game with a half-court heave, but the ball was mishandled near the scorers' table as time expired.
STATS OF THE GAME:
The Monks shot an even 50% (17-34) from three-point distance while the Pride posted a 35.0% (7-20) mark from beyond the arc.
LEADERS – SAINT JOSEPH'S:
- Curtis led the Monks with 23 points off a 6-for-12 three-point shooting performance with five assists, four rebounds, and three assists
- Casale registered his 12th double-double of the year – and 25th of his career – with 22 points and 13 rebounds and added three assists
- Sophomore David Keohan (West Newfield, Maine) tallied 15 points, seven assists, and five rebounds
- Junior guard Tatsuaki Sakai (Ishikawa, Japan) scored 12 points with five assists
LEADERS – REGIS:
- Trinidad scored a game-high 24 points with nine rebounds and a pair of assists
- Junior forward Devante Thompson (Fort Lauderdale, Fla.) netted 14 with three assists and two boards
- Freshman guard Cam Wilkins (Taunton, Mass.) came off the bench to contribute 14 points, seven rebounds, and three assists
- Junior forward Juvens Dalger (Oakland Park, Fla.) chipped in with 13 points, seven caroms, and three assists
MILESTONE REACHED:
With a trey ball at the 6:29 mark of the second half, Curtis became the third player in SJC men's basketball history to make 100 three-pointers in a single season. With 101 three-point field goals made in 219 attempts for a 46.1% conversion rate in 23 games, Curtis joins Casale, who made 100 threes last season, and Matt Medeiros '14, who holds the program single-season record with 103 (2013-14), in the exclusive club.
Heading into today's contest Curtis ranked third in the country in three-pointers made and fourth in three-point field goals per game (4.32).
HISTORICALLY SPEAKING:
With the win, Saint Joseph's improves to 4-0 in the history of the series with Regis College. In the last meeting between the conference foes, the Monks defeated the Pride, 88-87, on February 14th, 2019.
NEXT!
Saint Joseph's has just two games remaining on the regular season docket, the first being a GNAC game at Suffolk University on Tuesday (8:00 PM). The Monks will host GNAC-rival Lasell University on Saturday at 3:00 PM.
