UDC Suffers 86-72 Setback vs. Streaking Spartans

WASHINGTON, DC – Three Firebirds scored in double-figures and the team shot 47-percent from the field, but it was not enough to keep pace with a streaking St. Thomas Aquinas squad as the visiting Spartans defeated UDC, 86-72 for their fourth consecutive win on Thursday night at the UDC Sports Complex.

Senior point guard Quasim Jones (Media Arts – Philadelphia, PA/Johnson CC) registered game-highs of 20 points and seven assists, junior transfer forward Geran Pope (Political Science – Washington, DC/Virginia Union) added 15 points and six rebounds, and freshman guard Kory Cooley (Art – Silver Spring, MD/Calvin Coolidge HS) pitched in 14 points.

UDC fell to 3-14 overall and 3-6 in league play with tonight's loss. STAC remained in 3^rd in the league standings with a record of 8-2 (11-8 overall).

The Spartans featured four double-figure scorers, including a team-high 17 points by guard Chaz Watler and 13 points by forward Sam Berlin. Reserve forward Justin Reyes provided a spark off the bench as well, with 12 points on 6-of-7 FG shooting, four steals, two rebounds and two assists in just 11 minutes of action.

While both teams shot the ball well (STAC 53-percent), STAC was the much more efficient offensive team with 16 assists to just six turnovers compared to UDC's 12 assists and 13 turnovers. The Spartans cashed in for 20 points off of UDC miscues. They also out-rebounded UDC 33-29 which led to a 50-26 points in the paint advantage.  

Seven early points by Berlin helped STAC race out to a 12-4 lead nearly a little over four minutes into the game, but a three-pointer by Jones capped a 9-2 Firebirds run to help UDC pull within one, 14-13. UDC only trailed by two (19-17) just past the 12-minute mark, but STAC used an 11-3 run to extend its lead to double-figures, 30-20 with just under eight minutes left in the first half. The Spartans led by as many as 13 in the opening period and wound up taking a 44-34 advantage into the intermission.

In the second half, UDC cut the lead down to seven four separate times, including at the 10-minute mark on a layup by Pope which made the score, 59-52. At that point, however, STAC began to put the game away with a 12-4 run culminating in a three-pointer by Marcus Henderson to give the Spartans  a 15-point lead, 71-56. STAC's lead ballooned at 17 with 27 seconds remaining before the Spartans settled for a 14-point victory, 86-72.

Next up, UDC plays the first of a five-game road stretch on Saturday afternoon vs. ECC foe Mercy. Tip-off is at 2:30 p.m.