Newburgh, N.Y. – The College of Mount Saint Vincent Men's Basketball team had its 2011-12 season come to an end on Tuesday night with a 84-52 loss at third seed Mount Saint Mary in the opening round of the Skyline Conference Tournament. Freshman D'Andre McPhatter (Bronx, N.Y.) matched his career-high with 12 points on the night.
 
The Dolphins never led in the game and got as close as one point in the opening minutes when Cody Gauvard (Rockaway, N.Y.) hit a three-pointer to bring the Mount to within 4-3 at the 18:17 mark of the first half.
 
After the Gauvard triple, Mount Saint Mary used a 12-0 run keyed by three-pointers from Donte Howell and Joe Stabach to open a 16-3 advantage with 13:30 left before the half. Mount Saint Vincent would get as close as seven points after a pair of Shaquille Cunningham (Brooklyn, N.Y.) free-throws at the 10:42 mark, before the Knights closed the period on a 25-9 run to take a 41-20 lead into the intermission.
 
Valdez led the Knights with 10 points before the break as the team shot an even 50-percent from the field. Mount Saint Mary also held a 20-6 edge in points in the paint in the opening stanza and turned 13 Mount Saint Vincent turnovers into 16 points.
 
Coming out of halftime, the Knights used a 12-3 spurt over the first five minutes of the second half to pull in front by a commanding 53-23 advantage. The Dolphins would be able to climb as close as 24 points the rest of the night and saw their deficit grow to a game-high 35 points with just over five minutes left in the tilt.
 
Overall in the game, Mount Saint Mary shot 54.4-percent from the floor and knocked down eight three-pointers in the game. Valdez and Kevin Milella each scored 18 points and combined to go 15-for-19 from the floor. Each player grabbed eight rebounds and Valdez handed out five assists.
 
Stabach finished the night with 10 points, while Donte Howell led all players with six assists to go along with six points and three boards. Chris Pisciotta handed out five assists and Lenny Ragaglia knocked down three triples on his way to nine points.
 
McPhatter finished the game 4-for-7 from the floor and also added five rebounds as he matches his career scoring output. Cunningham also netted 12 points for the Dolphins to go along with three rebounds.
 
Junior Sean Caputo (Staten Island, N.Y.) finished a solid outing with six points, four rebounds and a team-high five assists. Michael Knott (Rockaway Beach, N.Y.) matched the team-high with six rebounds, while Kevin Henry (Yonkers, N.Y.) totaled six points and added six boards.
 
The Dolphins finished the game shooting 32.8-percent from the field, but struggled from behind the arc after going just 5-for-18.
 
Mount Saint Mary (20-6) finished the game with a 40-14 advantage in the paint and with a 10-0 edge in fast break points. The Knights also turned 17 Mount Saint Vincent turnovers into 20 points.
 
The loss ends Mount Saint Vincent's season at 11-15 overall.