Riverdale, N.Y. – The College of Mount Saint Vincent Men's Basketball team got a career-high 20 points from
Antonio Johnson (Fort Johnson, N.Y.) and 16 points from
Brandon Serrano (Hempstead, N.Y.) on Saturday, but suffered a 80-67 loss at the hands of Trinity (Conn.) in the final of the 2013 CMSV Tip-Off Tournament.
Mount Saint Vincent got off to a quick start on Saturday and used a 12-5 spurt to open an 11 point lead at 18-7. A Serrano three-point field goal gave the Dolphins their largest lead of the game with 11:58 left before halftime.
Trinity would answer with a 14-3 run covering just over five minutes to tie the score at 21-21. Steve Spirou bookended the run for the Bantams with a pair of three-pointers. Trinity would extend the run to 22-5 to pull in front 29-23 on a Juquann Starks triple with 3:44 left in the half and went on to score the last seven points of the frame on its way to a 35-28 lead at the intermission.
The Bantams went 11-for-28 from the floor in the first half, but outscored the Mount 10-4 in the paint and 7-0 on the fast break. Spirou led the way with 11 points on the strength of three triples, while Johnson led the Mount at the half with 10 points.
Mount Saint Vincent would fall behind by double-figures after the Bantams scored the first four points of the second half and the Dolphins scored just six points over the first 6:11 of the second frame. The Dolphins would put together a 6-0 run in the middle stages of the half to get back to within seven, but a 15-7 spurt from the visitors pushed the lead back to 16 points with 7:02 left in regulation.
The visitors shot just shy of 52-percent from the floor in the second half on the way to the victory and held Mount Saint Vincent to 32.6-percent shooting after halftime. Sparks, Shay Ajayi and Ed Ogundeko combined for 32 of the team's 45 second half points.
Johnson scored in double-figures for the second time this season after going 6-for-13 from the floor and a perfect 7-for-7 from the free-throw line. He added seven rebounds for the Dolphins. Serrano rounded out a big weekend with 16 points and six rebounds for the Mount on his way to being named to the All-Tournament Team.
Freshman Christian Giles (East Elmhurst, N.Y.) chipped in with seven points and five assists and
D'Andre McPhatter (Bronx, N.Y.) added eight points and five boards for the Dolphins.
Trinity had five players score in double-figures led by 20 points from Tournament MVP Starks. Ogundeko added 14 points and seven rebounds and Ajayi added 12 tallies and a pair of blocks. Hart Gliedman and Spirou added 11 points apiece and George Papadeas grabbed nine rebounds and blocked seven shots.
Overall, Mount Saint Vincent shot 31.5-percent from the floor and went 5-for-21 from behind the arc. Trinity shot 45.5-percent overall and held an 11-4 edge in fast break points for the game.
Following Saturday's loss Mount Saint Vincent stands at 1-1 overall on the season. The Dolphins will return to play on November 24 when they welcome Penn St.-Altoona to the Peter Jay Sharp Center. Tip-off is scheduled for 3:00 p.m.
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