IllinoisSports.Net-Mar-2019-686x94IllinoisSports.Net-Mar-2019-686x94IllinoisSports.Net-Mar-2019-686x94IllinoisSports.Net-Mar-2019-686x94
  • Home
  • Football
  • Volleyball
  • WBB
  • MBB
  • News

Strong second half sends Saints to win in New Year’s Classic opener

Published by ISN at December 29, 2020
Categories
  • Men's Basketball
  • NAIA
  • St. Francis
  • Top News
Tags
  • Jevon Knox
  • Kade Ruegsegger
  • Mount Vernon Nazarene
  • St. Francis

USF Athletics 
Marcus Taliaferro, Athletics Communication Assistant

JOLIET – The University of St. Francis men’s basketball team used a 50% shooting mark in the second half to send them to an 85-77 victory against  Mount Vernon Nazarene Tuesday afternoon in the opening round of the USF New Year’s Classic at the Sullivan Center.

The Saints (6-2) fell behind early trailing early after a layup from Mt. Vernon Nazarene’s Javon Knox put the Cougars ahead 19-9 with 13:15 left to the go in the half.  Despite the early setback, the Saints crawled back into the game after a layup from Reihana Maxwell-Topia (Fr/Aukland, New Zealand) gave the Saints a 24-22 advantage and their first lead of the game.  Senior guard Eric Ting (Sr/Taoyuan, Taiwan) would nail a couple of three-point field goals and push the Saints to a five-point lead (39-35) with 2:17 to go in the half.  The first-half would end with a buzzer-beating layup from Foward Lewis Holey (Sr/Sydney, Australia) as the Saints went into halftime leading the Cougars, 44-37.

USF finished the first-half shooting 16-36 (44%), 50% (6-12) from beyond the arch, and finished the half shooting 44% from the free-throw line.  The lead changed five times in the first-half with the Saints recovering from deficits as large as 10 and seven.  The ten-point lead was the largest lead of the Cougars who shot 50% from the field in the first half.

The Saints never looked back in this game as they held onto the lead until the finish.  USF, who connected on five second-half three-point field goals, lead by 15 points on four separate occasions in the half.  Carter Fayhee(Jr/Macomb, Ill) contributed to the victory with a couple of clutch shots towards the end of the game.  With the Saints up 8 with 3:57 left to go in the game, Fayhee connected on a clutch three-point shot to give the Saints a 79-68 lead with 3:25 left to go in the game.  Fayhee knocked down another clutch three-point field goal giving the Saints an 84-70 advantage with 1:46 left to go in the game and allowed the Saints to comfortably close out the game.

Deandre Johnson(Sr/ Watts, Calif) led the Saints offense with 17 points (6-8 FG, 5-6) in 21 minutes of play in a game that saw four total Saint players in double figures.  Right behind Johnson in scoring was guard Carlos Tovias( Corsicana, TX)  who contributed to 12 of the 40 bench points scored by the Saints. Eric Ting finished with 11 points and made a nice defensive contribution providing the Saints with four of their 10 total steals. Russel Tillery(Sr/Portland Oregon) knocked down 10 total points and tied for a game-leading five assists with Carter Fayhee.

As a team, The Saints would outrebound the Cougars, 37-35, including an 11-6 advantage on the offensive end.  Lewis Holey led the team with nine rebounds and Carter Fayhee followed behind him with seven rebounds.  The Saints scored 21 points off of 14 forced Cougar Turnovers.  The Saints finished the game shooting 46% (30-64) from the field, 11-21 (52%) from beyond the arch, and 66%(14-21) from the free-throw line.

Guard Jevon Knox finished the game with 28 points and was one of four Cougars who scored in double figures for Mt. Vernon Nazarene. Kade Ruegsegger provided 16 points while Clay Hilliard and Eric McLaughlin both provided 10 points.  The Cougars fall to 2-4 on the year and prepare to go up against Holy Cross in their second New Year’s Classic game.

The Saints are looking for an upset on Wednesday when they take on the No. 16 nationally-ranked Faulkner Eagles in the final game of the USF New Year’s Classic.  A 3 p.m. tip-off time is scheduled at the Sullivan Center.

Comments are closed.

countdown

countdown

countdown

Tulsa Personal Injury Lawyer
Truskett Law Firm

Tulsa Hospice Care
Seasons Hospice

Springfield Hospice Care
Seasons Hospice

Hospice Care Victoria, TX
Crown Hospice

Cape Girardeau Hospice Care
Crown Hospice

Tulsa Website Design
McWilliams Media

Tulsa Day Spa
Bella Vita Spa and Salon

Tulsa Storm Shelters
Southern Safe Rooms

Tulsa HVAC Contractor
Riverside Heat and Air Tulsa

Broken Arrow Church
Life Demonstration Church

Lean Consulting
Industrial Solutions Consulting

McAlester Criminal Law
Foundation Law Firm

Broken Arrow Insurance
Swinehart Insurance Agency

Tulsa Business Reviews
Tulsa's Top Rated Businesses

ESR Disaster Hero
Tulsa Water Damage

Bible Blast
Kid's Bible Curriculum

Stu B Que
Tulsa BBQ and Catering

On The Rock Roofing and Construction
Tulsa Roofing Contractor

Tulsa Wedding Events Center
Meadowlake Ranch

Tulsa Family Chiropractic
Travis Chiropractic

Oklahoma Dental Office Transitions
Jaquay Enterprise

Oklahoma City Business Lawyer
Bruner Law Firm

Claremore Plumbing
Sokt Plumbing

Tulsa Wedding Venues
Meadowlake Ranch

Dude Ranch
Meadowlake Ranch

Tulsa Bed and Breakfast
Meadowlake Ranch

Strengths Assessment
FYNS

Tulsa Kitchen Remodel
Lyon Construction

Tulsa Wedding Chapel
Glass Chapel

Tulsa Dentist
Dental Studio of South Tulsa

Tulsa State Farm agent
Chris Lile

Christine Norvell
Tulsa Christian Author

Gary W. Crews, PLLC
Tulsa Business Lawyer

Jon Grogan Studio
Tulsa Web Design

Relay Creative
Broken Arrow Website Design

Edumarking USA
Playground Designs

Lamb Homes LLC
Tulsa Custom Builders

McAlester Lawyers
Wagner & Lynch Law

Midtown Smiles
Tulsa Dentist

Perez Chiropractic & Wellness
Dallas Chiropractor

Blacksmith Roofing & Construction
Tulsa Roofing and Construction

Barnett Construction & Roofing
McAlester Roofing and Construction

Pryor Creek Dental
Pryor Dentist

High Tech Salon & Spa
Staunton Hair Salon

High Tech Salon & Spa
Harrisonburg Hair Salon

Tulsa Plumber
Sokt Plumbing

Tulsa Event Center
Stokely Event Center

Tulsa Professional Real Estate Coaching
Targeted Properties

Tulsa Health Products
Live Pure Freedom

Pryor Dentist
Pryor Creek Dental

Staunton Website Design
Synergize Creative

Stuarts Draft Donuts
The Galactic Donut

Skiatook Pest Control
Elite Home Services, Inc.

Tulsa Counseling
Alina Garbuz

Tulsa Construction
Property Arts, Inc.

Tulsa Family Dentist
Magnolia Family Dental Care

Tulsa Pediatric Dentist
Children's Dental Health Center

Fencing in Broken Arrow
Claremore's Fence Company

Jar Opener
The Grip Jar Opener

  • Football
  • Volleyball
  • Women’s Basketball
  • Men’s Basketball
  • Softball
  • Baseball
  • Division I
  • Division II
  • Division III
  • NAIA

Recent Posts

  • Bailey earns two first-place finishes, gains CCAC Athlete of the Week award
  • Lewis men defeat William Jewell to get back to .500
  • USF’s Tumilty named MSFA Special Teams Player of the Week
  • Contant posts career high as Tigers win thriller over Saints
  • ONU edged in both games at Truett McConnell
Copyright 2019 IllinoisSports.Net, a division of Emerald Quest | Tulsa Website Design McWilliams Media | Sitemap