Nov. 19, 2006
Final Stats |
Quotes
POUGHKEEPSIE, N.Y.-Marist senior center James Smith (Nyack, N.Y.) posted a game-high 22 points, while senior point guard Jared Jordan (Hartford, Conn.) came up one rebound shy of a triple double as the Red Foxes defeated Florida Atlantic 83-67 Sunday afternoon at the McCann Center. Marist improved to 2-1 overall, while Florida Atlantic dropped to 0-4.
Jordan finished with 16 points, 10 assists, nine rebounds and four steals, while Smith had six boards. Jordan was the national leader in assists last season with 8.5 per contest. Senior guard Will Whittington (Kingwood, Tx.) chipped in 14 points, while redshirt junior forward Ryan Stilphen (Bay Village, Ohio) had 12 points. Whittington is now just four 3-pointers from becoming the school record holder in career 3-pointers. Danny Basile (1992-96) hit 239 over the course of his career.
It looked like Marist would pull away early when it built a 12-point lead (17-5) just six minutes, 41 seconds into the contest on a free throw by redshirt sophomore guard Kaylen Gregory (St. Thomas, V.I). However, the Owls got right back into the game with a 16-3 run over the next six minutes, 36 seconds to take a 21-20 lead on a 3-pointer by Sean Alarcon. Florida Atlantic's Derrick Simmons got a fast break dunk with 37 seconds left in the half to stake the Owls to a 35-34 lead at the break.
The game stayed that close in the early minutes of the second half and was last tied (51-51) on a 3-pointer by Smith at the 14:12 mark. From that point, the Red Foxes used a 29-4 run over the next nine minutes, 52 seconds to give Marist its largest lead with 4:20 left on a layup by junior Wilfred Benjamin (St. Francis Village Erin, Trinidad) to make the score 80-55.
Paul Graham led Florida Atlantic with 20 points, while he and Paul Graham had five boards apiece to lead the way. Point guard Brent Crews had eight assists while he and Derrick Simmons had three steals apiece.
Jordan and Whittington were honored in a pregame ceremony for surpassing 1,000 career points, while the 2006 Marist softball squad was honored for last season's championship run at halftime.
The Red Foxes will now turn their attention to Minnesota for a 2:30 p.m. showdown on ESPN2 Thursday in the Old Spice Classic.
