Men's Basketball

December 17, 2007

Men's Basketball Swept At Mercyhurst Classic After Dropping Third Straight To Salem International, 89-78


FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Contact: Will Rothermel

Phone: (207)-337-1036

ERIE, PA- The Saint Michael's men's basketball team (6-4, 4-2 NE-10) were swept in the Mercyhurst Classic Monday night at the Mercyhurst Athletic Center after dropping its second contest in as many days to Salem International University (2-6, 0-2 WVIAC) despite seven three-pointers and 23 points from sophomore guard Ryan Rodrigues (Acushnet, Mass./New Bedford) in 24 minutes. Senior co-captain Brian Monahan (Kinderhook, N.Y./Christian Brothers Academy) also scored his tenth straight game in double-digits with 22 while pulling down six rebounds and adding five assists.

The Purple Knights did not have an answer for Salem International's junior forward Curtis Dorsey (Philadelphia, Pa./Benjamin Franklin) and his 26 points on 11-17 shooting from the field. Dorsey also ripped down 14 rebounds, 11 of which were on the defensive end. In a game that featured 26 three-pointers, senior guard senior guard Rashad Petty (Baltimore, Md./Dundalk CC) drained 4-6 from three-point range to score 14 points to go along with five assists. The Tiger's junior guard Chris Carey (Morgantown, WV/Doddridge County) hurt Saint Michael's at the line, going 9-11 to score 21 points and grab seven rebounds, three steals and three assists.

In Saint Michael's second straight non-conference loss, the Purple Knights resorted to shooting more than half of their shots from beyond the arc (35 of 66). In the first half, Rodrigues connected on 4-6 from long range but the Purple Knights still trailed at the half, 40-39. Junior forward Jon Zylstra (Uxbridge, Mass./Whitinsville Christian) rebounded from a scoreless outing the night before against Ohio Valley with 15 points, 11 boards and seven assists. Saint Michael's only had six players in the scoring column with Rodrigues as their only bench scorer.

Saint Michael's was outscored in the paint 36-20 due in large part to the physical play of Dorsey and Carey's ability to pentrate the lane. The Purple Knights jumped out to an early lead in the second half but after being knotted at 54 with 15:45 to play, Salem International never looked back. Saint Michael's climbed back to within three points with two minutes remaining but could not score down the stretch against the Tigers zone.

Saint Michael's travels to Saint Rose to complete the 2007 portion of their schedule in a Northeast-10 Conference matchup on Wednesday, December 19 at 7:30 p.m. after the women of Saint Michael's take on the Golden Knights at 5:30 p.m.

Scoring Summary:

Saint Michael's--39........39........78

Salem International--40........49........89

###PURPLE KNIGHTS###