Morgan and Simmons Combine for 44 in Heated Conference Showdown Against STAC
| Final | 1 | 2 | T | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
|
Dist. Columbia (5-11,3-4 ECC) | 43 | 32 | 75 |
|
St. Thomas Aquinas (14-3,6-1 ECC) | 38 | 43 | 81 |
SPARKHILL, N.Y.- the University of the District of Columbia's men's basketball team fell to St Thomas Aquinas College 75-81 in a conference thriller, Wednesday night at Aquinas Hall. The Firebirds slipped to 3-4 in conference play while the Spartans moved to 6-1.
Eric Morgan Jr posted a career high 25 points, Vernon Simmons posted a season high 19 points and Hartnel Haye posted a double-double off 13 points and 13 rebounds. Micah Campbell also pulled 11 boards and Tevin Curtis had a game-high six assists. Morgan Jr has averaged 20.3 points per game over the last three games.
Toren Portee got the Firebirds on the board first with a pull up Jump shot. Morgan Jr gave UDC the early 7-2 lead after a jump shot and a trey. UDC extended their lead by 12 after Morgan Jr and Nicolaus Kenton knocked down back to back treys. The Firebirds were on fire shooting 61% from the field up until the 3 minute mark as the Spartans slowly made their way back into the game making it a two posession game with 1:14 to go. Haye's layup with 0:01 remaining gave UDC the five point lead heading into half-time.
Coming off the break Curtis extended that lead to eight after knocking down a three pointer. STAC's first lead of the game came with 8:20 remaining on the clock. A 9-2 run saw UDC down by seven, their largest defeicit of the game. The home team tried to pull away, going ahead by as much as nine points, but the game was far from over, as a layup from Simmons made it a three point game with 31 seconds to go. The Spartans went on to make a dunk and a free throw to take the win.
UDC shot at 43.1% from the field while STAC shot at 41.2%. The Firebirds out rebounded the Spartans 46-40 and had the advantage with points in the paint (34-30). Both teams went 66.7% from the free throw line but the home team was a force behind the arc going 11-25 (45.8%) from deep.
Next up, UDC (5-11, 3-4 ECC) will head back to N.Y. on Saturday to face off against Mercy University. Tip-off is set for 2:00 pm.