ALBANY, N.Y. – Sophomore Roy Mabrey (Belmar, N.J.) poured in 25 points to lead the Saint Anselm College men's basketball team to a 77-51 victory against Mercy College on Sunday afternoon in its final game at the Saint Rose Tip-Off Tournament at Nolan Gymnasium.
The Hawks start 2-0 for the first time in two seasons, while the Mavericks fall to 0-2.
Mabrey hit nine of his 18 shots from the field, including 5 of 11 from behind the arc, as well as both of his free throws. The reigning Northeast-10 Rookie of the Year filled the stat sheet with seven rebounds, six assists, three steals and a pair of blocks in 33 minutes. Freshman Mike McCahey (Clarkstown, N.Y.), who posted a double-double of 20 points and 13 rebounds in his first career game against Concordia (N.Y.) on Saturday, backed Mabrey's performance with 19 points on 8 of 13 shooting, including 2 of 4 from deep. McCahey added five boards, two assists, a block and a steal in 30 minutes.
Saint Anselm jumped out to a 4-0 lead on baskets by McCahey and Mabrey, but seven straight points, including five from Joseph Pope, put Mercy on top by three at the 16:14 mark. Layups by junior Dominic Borelli (Westbrook, Maine) and McCahey re-gained the lead for the Hawks 39 seconds later, but a 6-0 Mercy run – capped by a Pope jumper – put the Mavericks back in front, 13-8, with 12:16 remaining in the opening half.
Kirk Bailey answered a Mabrey layup with a three-point play that gave Mercy its largest lead of the day at 16-10 with 11:21 to play in the half. After Bailey responded to a 3-pointer from junior John Nielsen (Port Jefferson, N.Y.) with a basket that made the Mercy lead five at 10:34, the Hawks hit back with a 12-2 run that gave them a 25-20 lead with 6:23 left. Mabrey sparked the run with a layup and then gave Saint Anselm the lead for good at 20-18 with a 3-pointer at 8:30.
Three straight points from Pope trimmed the Mavericks' deficit to just a pair, but Mabrey knocked in a 3 with 4:49 remaining to ignite a 12-0 run that gave the Hawks a commanding 37-23 advantage with 55 seconds on the clock. Mabrey followed a 3-pointer by sophomore Chris Santo (Cherry Hill, N.J.) with another trey of his own that expanded the lead to 11. McCahey hit one of two at the line and sophomore Andre King (Springfield, Mass.) converted a layup to cap the stretch.
A pair of free throws from Remi Mignott shaved a pair of points off the lead, but McCahey tipped in Mabrey's missed 3 with one second on the clock and the Hawks took a 39-25 lead into the break.
Mabrey and McCahey had 15 and nine, respectively, at the half.
Mabrey kicked off the second half with a layup just 22 seconds in that nudged the lead to 16. Mercy had cut it back to 13 when consecutive McCahey 3s put Saint Anselm on top, 52-33, with 12:47 to go. The lead was still 19 just over three minutes later when a tip-in by freshman Victor Joshua (New Haven, Conn.) pushed the lead to 60-39.
The Mavericks used a 5-0 spurt to trim their deficit back to 16, but four straight points from senior James Morse (Arundel, Maine) made it an even 20-point game at 64-44 with 6:35 left.
The Saint Anselm lead was still 20 over a minute later when a three-point play from Morse and another Mabrey trey gave the Hawks their largest lead of the contest at 72-46 with 4:13 left to play.
Mercy was able to cut it to 23 with three straight points, but the Hawks closed the scoring with a Santo layup and a free throw from freshman Ryan Hartung (Haverhill, Mass.) that brought the final margin to 26.
Borelli recorded eight points, six boards, two steals and a block, while Morse added seven points, four rebounds, three assists and a steal. Sophomore Dino Mallios (Winthrop, Mass.) chipped in three points, seven assists and three steals.
The Hawks outshot the Mavericks, 42.9 percent (30-70) to 33.3 percent (18-54), including 40 percent (10-25) to 7.7 percent (1-13) from long range. Saint Anselm turned the ball over just 11 times, while forcing 19 Mercy turnovers, in addition to holding a 41-38 edge on the glass.
Pope led the Mavericks with 18 points.
Saint Anselm returns to action Wednesday, Nov. 14 at 7:30 p.m. when it travels to take on Stonehill College. The Hawks kick off their home slate Tuesday, Nov. 20 at 7:30 p.m. when they play host to cross-town rival Southern New Hampshire University at Stoutenburgh Gymnasium. Stay up-to-date with the latest news, including game previews and recaps, directly from the Saint Anselm College athletic department by liking us on Facebook (http://www.facebook.com/STAHawks) and following us on Twitter (http://www.twitter.com/STAHawks).
