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A.J. Rudowitz had an excellent all-around game with 12 points, 10 rebounds, five assists and four steals. |
Orlando, Fla. - Freshman Vince Rosario (Perth Amboy, N.J.) led a quartet of Skyhawks in double figures with 17 points, as Stonehill turned a ten point half time lead into a 74-54 season-opening win over Barry University at the 11th annual Disney Tipoff Classic.
Stonehill fell behind early 11-5, before righting itself, going on a 16-7 run to take a 21-18 lead and eventual 30-20 lead at the break.
The Skyhawks lead grew to 13 in the early stages of the second half, but the Bucs responded, going on a 13-3 run to trim the lead to 38-36.
After a 30 second timeout, Stonehill got a three-pointer from Rosario, a tip in from Colin Scanlon (Centreville, Va.), a layup from A.J. Rudowitz (Monroe Township, N.J.) and a layin from Matt Hall (Springfield, Mass.) and another three from Rosario to regain control of the contest, 53-41 with just under eight minutes to go.
A jumper from freshman Mike Kernan (Shawnee, N.J.) (four points, 10 rebounds) gave Stonehill their biggest lead of the game at 72-48, as the Skyhawks outscored the Buccaneers 44-34 in the second half.
Barry, playing with five new starters, shot only 33 percent from the field for the game, while the Skyhawks, who warmed up considerably in the second half, hit on 42 percent of their attempts.
Rosario, who was five-for-seven from three point territory, did his damage in just 20 minutes of action. He added three assists and two steals, while junior Nick Smith (Colonia, N.J.) had 16 points and four rebounds. Hall dropped in three shots from behind the arc en route to a 14 point outing and Rudowitz chipped in with 12 points, 10 rebounds five assists and four steals.
The winners of three straight season-opening games, Stonehill returns to action on Saturday with a noon tipoff against Grand Valley State.
