ALBERTUS MAGNUS DOWNS MEN’S BASKETBALL IN GNAC OPENER, 91-71

BOSTON, Mass. – Junior guard Eian Davis (Brooklyn, N.Y.), junior forward Victor Ljuljdjuraj (Bronx, N.Y.) and senior guard Darius Watson (New Britain, Conn.) combined for 63 points to lead the Albertus Magnus College men's basketball team past Emmanuel College, 91-71, Thursday evening at the Jean Yawkey Center. With the win, the Falcons who received eight votes in the most recent D3hoops.com national poll, improve to 6-0 on the year and 2-0 in Great Northeast Athletic Conference action while the loss drops the Saints to 1-5 and 0-1.

A jumper by EC junior forward Philkwan Tate (Bloomfield, Conn.) gave the Saints the early 4-2 lead before the Falcons went on a 7-0 spurt capped by a layup from sophomore guard Marc Wilson (Jersey City, N.J.) to make it 9-4 with under 16:00 minutes remaining in the half.

With 10:09 to play in the opening frame, senior guard Brandon Jones' (Windsor, Conn.) made it 18-12 with a free throw but the Saint would be held scoreless for almost four minutes of action. Over that span, Albertus went on a 10-0 run fueled by four points from Watson to make it a 28-12 game.

The Falcons would lead by as many as 19 (33-14) in the first half before the Saints battled back into the action. Trailing 36-19 with 4:02 left on the clock, Emmanuel was able to string together a 6-0 spurt capped by Tate dunk to pull EC within striking distance at 36-25.  The squads would trade hoops down the stretch and EC would trail 40-27 heading into the halftime intermission.

Over the first five minutes in the second stanza, neither squad was able to gain any ground as the margin remained at 13 with the score standing at 52-39.

A three from senior guard Josh Welles (Philadelphia, Pa.) at the top of the key pulled the Saints to within single digits (44-52) but the Falcons responded on the next possession with a three by junior guard Kyle Wiggins (Milford, Conn.) to pull the lead back to double-digits at 55-44 with 13:20 to play.

A fast break layup by Wiggins extended the AMC lead to 63-45 with under 12 minutes remaining before an old fashion three-point play from EC freshman swingman James Sullivan (Wethersfield, Conn.) made it 63-48 with 11:05 left.

Five consecutive Watson points made it 68-50 before a free throw and basket by Davis gave the Falcons their first 20+ point lead of the night at 71-50 and minutes later a deep three from Ljuljdjuraj extended the lead to 80-58 and put the game out of reach for Emmanuel. Albertus would hold on for the 91-71 road win.

Davis finished with a game-high 22 points to go along with 13 assists while Watson was right behind him with 21 points. Ljuljdjuraj chipped in with 20 points.

For Emmanuel, four players finished in double-figures with Tate leading the way with 14 points. Junior guard Jordan DeMario (Aliso Viejo, Calif.) and sophomore forward John Clay (Westport, Mass.) added 13 apiece while Jones finished with 11.

Both squads are back in action on Saturday afternoon in GNAC play as the Saints head to Lasell College while the Falcons host Suffolk University. Both games are scheduled for a 3:00 PM tip.