NEW HAVEN, CT - Albertus Magnus (14-4, 10-1 GNAC) defeated Saint Joseph's (13-5, 8-3 GNAC), 81-76, to solidify its position at the top of the GNAC Men's Basketball standings on Saturday afternoon. Chris Petzy '12 (Kensington, NH) scored a career-high 26 points to lead all scorers in the losing effort.

Zach O'Brien '12 (Schenectady, NY) netted his second double-double of the season with 22 points and 11 boards and Ray Eatmon '10 (Huntington, NY) added 14 for Saint Joseph's.

Ray Askew paced the hosts with 23 points and 7 caroms, while Byron Reaves put up 20, off a 4-5 performance beyond the arc, and Sha'Ron Young contributed with 19 points for the Falcons, who have now won eight straight games, including two victories over Saint Joseph's.

For the Monks, the loss was eerily similar to the one they suffered to the Falcons just 12 days ago at the Harold Alfond Center. On that evening, St. Joe's carried a nine-point lead into the break only to witness Albertus outscore them 48-27 in the second stanza en route to a 78-66 win. Today, the Monks carried a nine-point advantage into the locker room, but again the Falcons erased the deficit and then some, by besting the visitors by a 41-27 margin in the latter half on their way to an 81-76 win.

The Monks entered the game as the conference leader in three-point success, but the long-distance bids wouldn't fall for the Royal Blue in this one. St. Joe's made just one trey in the entire game and was 1-14 (7.1%) from beyond the arc in the loss.

The battle between GNAC stalwarts featured 12 lead changes and the game was tied on nine occasions. The SJC halftime lead was gained on a 9-0 run in the closing two minutes of the opening half, but Albertus responded in kind with an 8-2 surge to begin the second stanza and trailed 51-48 after Askew drained a trifecta at the 18:25 mark.  

St. Joe's maintained the lead until the 12:21 mark when Young converted a traditional three-point play to provide the Falcons with a 57-56 edge. The Monks immediately recaptured the advantage when Petzy, who scored 8 consecutive points for the Monks in the middle of the half, drained a short-range jumper with 11:57 to play.

The teams went on to trade blows for the next five minutes,  but Albertus gained a considerable cushion with an 11-4 run that began with the game tied, 66-66, at the 6:55 mark. The surge ended with Askew hitting a pair of freebies, and the Falcons in the lead 79-70, with 3:30 to go.

The Monks methodically chipped away at the deficit and were in a position to tie the game with 12 seconds left, but a Petzy three-point attempt rattled the rim. With the help of an 8-8 performance from the charity stripe in the closing minutes, Albertus Magnus advanced to an 81-76 triumph.

St. Joe's shot 48.3% (29-60) from the field, 7.1% (1-14) from three-point range, and 77.3% (17-22) from the line, while Albertus shot 43.1% (28-65) overall, 44.4% (8-18) from beyond the arc and 77.3% (17-22) from the line. St. Joe's held a 41-31 advantage on the boards, but committed 17 turnovers and forced just six miscues in the losing effort.

The Monks' three-point rate and assist total (8) both rank as season-lows and St. Joe's was held without a blocked shot for the first time this season in the loss.

St. Joe's will play at Emmanuel (4-14, 3-8 GNAC) on Monday night at 7:00 PM, while Albertus Magnus will travel to Norwich on Tuesday for a 7:00 PM tip.

Newspaper Box Score
St. Joseph's (Me.) vs Albertus Magnus
01/30/10 3:00 PM at Albertus Magnus College "The Nest"
At Albertus Magnus College "The Nest"
ALBERTUS MAGNUS 81, ST. JOSEPH'S (ME.) 76
ST. JOSEPH'S (ME.) (13-5, 8-3 GNAC)
Chris Petzy 9-15 7-8 26; Zach O'Brien 9-14 4-5 22; Ray Eatmon 7-8 0-1 14;
Alberto Rue 1-5 3-3 5; Rashon Jones 2-9 1-2 5; Tyler Kelley 1-6 2-3 4;
Anthony Savino 0-2 0-0 0; Tom Ray 0-0 0-0 0; Julio Vazquez 0-1 0-0 0. Totals
29-60 17-22 76.
ALBERTUS MAGNUS (14-4, 10-1 GNAC)
Ray Askew 7-14 7-10 23; Byron Reaves 7-10 2-2 20; Sha'Ron Young 7-10 4-5 19;
Walden St. Juste 3-13 1-2 8; Jefferson Lora 2-4 2-2 6; Arshad Jackson 2-9
0-0 4; Mike Sweeney 0-2 1-1 1; Brendan Lang 0-0 0-0 0; Sean Bertanza 0-1 0-0
0; David Armstrong 0-0 0-0 0; Mike Torres 0-1 0-0 0; Alex Muniz 0-1 0-0 0;
James Economopoulos 0-0 0-0 0. Totals 28-65 17-22 81.
St. Joseph's (Me.)............   49   27  -   76
Albertus Magnus...............   40   41  -   81
3-point goals--St. Joseph's (Me.) 1-14 (Chris Petzy 1-4; Zach O'Brien 0-1;
Alberto Rue 0-2; Rashon Jones 0-3; Tyler Kelley 0-4), Albertus Magnus 8-18
(Byron Reaves 4-5; Ray Askew 2-2; Walden St. Juste 1-3; Sha'Ron Young 1-2;
Mike Torres 0-1; Alex Muniz 0-1; Arshad Jackson 0-4). Fouled out--St.
Joseph's (Me.)-Alberto Rue, Albertus Magnus-Jefferson Lora. Rebounds--St.
Joseph's (Me.) 41 (Zach O'Brien 11), Albertus Magnus 31 (Ray Askew 7).
Assists--St. Joseph's (Me.) 8 (Ray Eatmon 3), Albertus Magnus 16 (Walden St.
Juste 4). Total fouls--St. Joseph's (Me.) 21, Albertus Magnus 16. Technical
fouls--St. Joseph's (Me.)-None, Albertus Magnus-TEAM.