Skyhawks Make It Seven Straight With 68-62 Win

Randall Stallworth handed out seven assists in the 68-62 win over AIC.

Boxscore

North Easton, Mass. - Junior Nick Smith (Colonia, N.J.) had a game-high 19 points to lead Stonehill to its seventh straight victory, this time a 68-62 home win over American International on Wednesday evening.

Smith, who dropped in four three-pointers, helped seal the Skyhawk win by making three of four free throws in the final 1:27.

The seven straight wins for Stonehill, now 12-6 overall and 8-3 in the Northeast-10, is the longest winning streak since they ran off 12 in a row during the 2005-06 campaign.

The first half proved to be a back and forth affair, as the lead changed hand 12 times and the score was tied on three separate occasions. With sophomore A.J. Rudowitz (Monroe Township, N.J.) and freshman Mike Kernan (Medford, N.J.) leading the charge, Stonehill outscored the Yellow Jackets 24-10 in the paint in the first half. That duo combined to go 7-for-7 from the field in the opening stanza, while contributing seven rebounds.

American International, down 38-30 at the half, stormed back, opening the second half on a 14-5 run to take a 44-43 lead with a little less than 15 minutes remaining.

Three Yellow Jacket turnovers helped ignite the Skyhawks and Stonehill took the lead for good on three Rudowitz free throws, two of which were prior to a Matt Hall (Springfield, Mass.) steal and two-handed, breakaway dunk.

The Skyhawks put the game away for good on a blistering 9-0 run, with Colin Scanlon (four) (Centreville, Va.) and Smith (five) providing all the points.

The Skyhawks, who shot 46 percent from the field but just 20 percent from behind the arc, were outrebounded by the Yellow Jackets, 34-29.

Stonehill scored 21 points off of 21 American International turnovers, and with Kernan (eight points, six rebounds) and Vince Rosario (Perth Amboy, N.J.) (five points, three assists, two steals) doing a large portion of the damage, the Skyhawk bench held a 15-4 edge.

Rudowitz, who saw only 17 minutes of action due to foul trouble, had 15 points and six rebounds, while Randall Stallworth (Toms River, N.J.) had four points, three rebounds and seven assists.