Brooklyn, N.Y. – Playing its first road game of the season, the College of Mount Saint Vincent Men's Basketball squad came up just short on Tuesday, dropping a tough 68-66 decision at St. Joseph's-Brooklyn. Junior James Zuccaro (Gilbert, Ariz.) led three Dolphins with at least 15 points with a game-high 19.
 
Mount Saint Vincent's only lead of the night came on a Zuccaro conversion in the opening minute to give the Dolphins an early 2-0 advantage. The Bears responded with 13 of the next 14 points in the game to open a 13-3 edge with just under 15 minutes to play in the opening period.
 
St. Joseph's-Brooklyn would extend its lead to double-figures on three straight David Ortiz free-throws with 10:21 to play before the half and opened a 17 point advantage following a David Louison conversion with just under six minutes to play before the intermission.
 
Mount Saint Vincent would rally with the final seven points of the stanza, highlighted by a Michael Knott (Rockaway Beach, N.Y.) three point play, but would trail 35-25 after 20 minutes of action.
 
The Mount shot 27-percent from the floor overall in the first 20 minutes and converted only one of its 10 chances from behind the arc. The Bears cashed in on nearly 45-percent of their chances with Louison leading all scorers at the break with 12 points.
 
The Dolphins would come out of halftime and get its deficit under double-figures on a Shaquille Cunningham (Brooklyn, N.Y.) three point play with 17:48 left in regulation as part of a 10-1 run capped by a pair of Zuccaro baskets that got the Mount to within three points with 16:40 to play.
 
After Zuccaro's second bucket, the Dolphins went nearly four minutes without a point and saw its deficit grow back to 10 after a quick 9-2 spurt from the Bears.
 
Trailing by 11 with 4:59 to play, Mount Saint Vincent closed the game on a 15-6 run to get to within just two points with 20 seconds left. The Dolphins held the Bears to just three points over the final 2:21, but couldn't convert on a second chance opportunity at the horn to send the game to overtime.
 
Zuccaro led all players on the night on 9-for-19 shooting overall. He also finished the night with team-highs in rebounds with eight and steals with four. Cunningham wrapped up the evening with 17 tallies and five rebounds.
Senior Stephen Oliver (Brooklyn, N.Y.) rounded out the trio in double-figures with 15 points after going 5-for-9 from three point range in the game. He finished the night with all of the team's makes from distance.
 
Knott turned in a solid night with five points and five boards for the Dolphins, while Sean Caputo (Staten Island, N.Y.) matched Cunningham for the team-high with a pair of assists.
 
The Bears had four players in double-figures led by Ortiz who closed the night with 14 points to go along with three assists and three steals. Louison finished with a double-double after scoring 13 points and hauling in a game-high 16 rebounds.
 
Mount Saint Vincent finished the game shooting 33.3-percent overall, but converted on only 53.8-percent of its chances from the free-throw line. The Dolphins were outscored by 10 points from the stripe on Tuesday.
 
Tuesday's loss drops Mount Saint Vincent to 1-2 overall on the season heading into Thursday's Skyline Conference opener at Mount Saint Mary. Opening tip with the Knights is set for 8:00 p.m.