Nov. 16, 2010

Box Score

VILLANOVA, Pa. - The Marist men's basketball team opened its season with an 84-47 loss to #6/#7 Villanova in the first round of the 2010 Dick's Sporting Goods NIT Season Tip-Off on Tuesday at The Pavilion. The Red Foxes trailed by just eight with under 16 minutes to play, but Villanova closed the game on a 17-0 run in the final five minutes. Freshman guard/forward Jay Bowie (Tampa, Fla.) led the Red Foxes with 14 points.

Playing in his first collegiate game, Bowie shot 5-for-9 from the field, 2-for-4 from three-point range and 2-for-2 from the free-throw line. He added three rebounds, two assists and two steals while committing just one turnover in 28 minutes. Senior forward Korey Bauer (Whitehall, Pa.) grabbed a team-high six rebounds, and senior guard Dejuan Goodwin (Baltimore, Md.) led the Red Foxes with three assists.

Villanova's Corey Stokes opened the scoring with a three-pointer at the 18:13 mark, but Bowie answered with a jumper and a three-pointer as Marist took a 5-3 lead with 15:58 left in the first half. A three-point play by sophomore guard Sam Prescott (Philadelphia, Pa.) gave the Red Foxes their largest lead of the contest at 8-5, but the Wildcats answered with a 9-0 run as they maintained the lead for the remainder of the contest.

In the waning seconds of the first half, red-shirt freshman Anell Alexis (Hillsborough, N.J.) hit the first basket of his career, a three-pointer which brought the Red Foxes to within 11 at the intermission at 36-25. With 15:53 left to play, an Alexis jumper brought the Red Foxes to within 38-30, but Villanova answered with a 12-0 run over the next 2:11.

Marist will return to action on Wednesday, when the Red Foxes face George Washington in the second round of the 2010 Dick's Sporting Goods NIT Season Tip-Off. The game will also take place at The Pavilion on the campus of Villanova, and will tip off at 5:30 p.m. The Colonials suffered a 76-67 loss to Boston University in the tournament's first round.