Knights Top Old Westbury, Collect Third Straight Victory

NEWBURGH – Senior Gerard Nocera led five players in double-figures on Sunday with a game-high 19 points as the Mount Saint Mary College Men’s Basketball team posted its third straight win with an impressive 81-63 home triumph over visiting Old Westbury.
 
Mount Saint Mary tailed only briefly on Sunday, 2-1, before a Tyler McDine triple pushed the Mount in front for good just over two minutes into the tilt. The Mount opened an eight-point lead on a Nocera three-pointer with 14:42 left in the first half and grabbed its first double digit lead of the day when Daniel Wolff canned a trey to give the Mount a 19-9 lead just over eight minutes into the game.
 
The Knights used a 9-1 run, keyed by a 3-for-3 effort from behind the arc, to jump in front by 16 points with 6:24 left in the opening stanza and after Old Westbury sliced the lead to 30-22 on a Julieon Boney triple, closed the half with seven of the final 11 points, including two Nocera free-throws with no time left, to carry a 37-26 lead into the intermission.
 
The Mount shot an even 50-percent from the floor in the opening 20 minutes and a sizzling 57.1-percent from three-point range, going 8-for-14 from downtown. Wolff hit four triples over the half with Nocera connecting twice from bonus distance. Wolff led all scorers at the break with 14 points, with Nocera chipping in with 10.
 
The Knights picked right up where it left off after halftime, opening the second frame with an 8-2 run to move in front 45-28 just under four minutes into the stanza. The Knights held Old Westbury to 1-for-7 shooting over the run.
 
The advantage grew to 18 points on a Kendall Francis three-point play with 15 minutes left in regulation and the Mount did not allow the Panthers closer than 10 points the rest of the afternoon.
 
After Old Westbury cut its deficit to 68-58 with 4:54 left in regulation time, the Knights responded with a 13-2 stretch to open its largest lead of the contest. Connor Bacci started the run with a triple to spread the lead back to 13 points with Nocera adding a three-pointer and Andrew Holmes converting a pair of lay-ins. The Mount went 3-for-4 from the line over the final run and held Old Westbury to just two field goals over the final 4:20 of the tilt.
 
The Knights shot better than 50-percent from the floor for the second time this season, converting at a season-best 51.9-percent clip on Sunday. The Mount hit 11 three-pointers on the day and over the last two games have converted 27 times from behind the arc. The Mount also had an efficient afternoon at the free-throw line, converting 16 of its 20 attempts on the day.
 
Nocera finished 7-for-13 from the floor on Sunday, with a trio of treys, to go along with a team-high seven rebounds. Wolff connected on five triples for the Knights and finished with 17 points with Francis coming off the bench to go a perfect 6-for-6 from the floor for 15 points and a pair of assists.
 
McDine and Holmes each chipped in with 10 points on Sunday, with McDine leading the team with four assists. Holmes contributed three helpers and four rebounds to the winning effort. Bacci finished up with a pair of three-pointers and a pair of steals for the Knights.
 
Old Westbury, who shot 40-percent overall and 26.3-percent from three-point range, was led by 17 points from Alan McDonald. The Panthers turned the ball over 18 times, leading to a 28-16 edge in points off turnovers for the Knights.