Men's Basketball Grabs 72-67 Victory over St. Francis (PA)
Five Blackbirds Score in Double Figures

02/17/05 -- Five players scored in double figures for the third time this season to lead Long Island University to a 72-67 triumph over St. Francis (PA) in Northeast Conference men's basketball action on Thursday evening at Schwartz Center. The victory marked the most for an LIU team at home since the 2000-01 season.

Guard James Williams (DeSoto, Texas) netted 14 points, marking the 18th time the sophomore has led the team in scoring this season. Classmate Esa Maki-Tulokas (Forssa, Finland) registered his third ‘double-double’ of the season, scoring 10 points and adding 13 rebounds.

Junior Aubin Scott (Hempstead, N.Y.) added 12 points, seven rebounds and four steals. Off the bench, senior Derek Bell (Brooklyn, N.Y.) and sophomore Evan Meekins (E. Providence, R.I.) chipped in 13 and 11 points, respectively.

The Blackbirds (11-13, 8-7 NEC) started quickly, pulling out to a 15-6 advantage at the 13:53 mark on a pair of free throws from Williams. The Red Flash (13-11, 8-7) narrowed the margin to one (21-20) following a 14-6 run. Jason Osborne tallied four of St. Francis’ 14 points during the six-minute spurt.

LIU closed out the stanza with an 8-4 surge, posting a 29-24 lead at intermission. Maki-Tulokas scored four of the Blackbird’s final eight points, both baskets coming on offensive put-backs.

The Blackbirds pushed ahead, 37-28, on a tip-in from Kellen Allen with 17:22 remaining. SFPA battled back behind a 20-8 run to take a 48-45 lead with 10:22 showing. A layup from Jason Osborne closed out the drive.

LIU responded behind the long-range shooting of Meekins. He drilled two 3-pointers, including one which included a four-point play to give the Blackbirds their largest advantage, 60-50, with 7:32 remaining.

Osborne tallied a game-high 25 points, 19 coming in the second half. Junior guard Darshan Luckey closed with 18 points and guard Garrett Farha handed out 10 assists in the loss.

The Blackbirds shot 42.2 percent (27-of-64) from the field. The Red Flash countered with a 52.6 percent effort (30-of-57), including a 65.5 percent showing in the second stanza.

LIU closed with a 40-27 rebounding advantage. The Blackbirds have out-rebounded their past three opponents by a combined 15.0 boards.

LIU travels to Sacred Heart on Saturday, February 19 at 2:00 p.m. The game will be broadcast on the Metro Network.