Sparkill, N.Y. - The St. Thomas Aquinas College Men's Basketball team rattled off its seventh straight victory on Wednesday evening, downing Assumption University, 72-58 at Aquinas Hall.

STAC moves to 10-1 overall, while Assumption drops to 4-6.

Jamal Barnes led the way for the Spartans, recording 23 points, while Antonio Vendola (13 points) and Luis Risquez (13 points) also scored in double-figures.

STAC shot 35.0 percent from the field (21-60) and 47.8 percent from three (11-23), while Assumption shot 42.3 percent (22-52) from the floor.

STAC NOTES AND HIGHLIGHTS:

• Eight Spartans recorded double-digit minutes in the contest. 
• DeVante Jamison led STAC with five assists on the evening.
• Jamal Barnes made 8 of his 14 field goal attempts, with six coming from three, while Luis Risquez went 4-of-9 and Antonio Vendola 3-of-7 from the floor.
• Assumption out rebounded STAC 39-34 in 40 minutes of action, with James Patterson posting a team-high nine boards for the maroon and gold.
• St. Thomas Aquinas picked up 14 steals in the contest, with Assumption turning the ball over on 24 separate occasions.
• The Spartans earned advantages in two team statistical categories over the Greyhounds: Points off of Turnovers (24-8) and Bench Points (24-15).
• The game featured three ties and five lead changes.

HOW IT HAPPENED:

• An Assumption three-pointer in the opening seconds of the contest held true for the first minute and a half, before DeVante Jamison's jumper put the Spartans on the scoreboard for the first time, making 3-2.
• A 4-0 run then put the Greyhounds up by five, 7-2 with 14:13 left to play in the stanza.
• STAC would work its way back into the game, trailing by two points on multiple occasions, while not allowing Assumption to extend its lead by more than four points over the next seven minutes.
• Back and forth action between the squads kept things close, but the Spartans were finally able to tie the score at 20-20 on a free-throw by Kyle Pulliam with 87 seconds to play before halftime.
• The visitors would reclaim the lead 22-20, before an Antonio Vendola trey would sail through the net in the final 30 seconds to give STAC its first lead of the night, 23-22 at the break.
• Luis Risquez paced the Spartans offense with six first-half points apiece, while Rapolas Buivdas posted six points of his own for the Greyhounds.
• Following the intermission, STAC increased its lead to four (26-22) via another Antonio Vendola three, but Assumption would continue to hit its shots, scoring the next five points to retake the lead at 27-26.
• However, the Spartans pushed back and racked up 11 of the next 14 points to once again flip the scoreboard in their favor, 37-30 with 14:21 left to play.
• See-saw play saw Assumption put together another offensive surge and cut its deficit down to just two, before pulling ahead 47-45 at the seven minute mark of the second half.
• Jamal Barnes' four-point play gave the Spartans back the lead at 49-47, but it would be short-lived, as Assumption would tie the game on a jump shot with 6:31 to go.
• A 17-3 streak by St. Thomas Aquinas would give the hosts a comfortable 14-point advantage, 66-52 with just under two minutes to play.
• Free-throws in the final minutes of the non-conference tilt would prove valuable to the Spartans, as DeVante Jamison (4 of 4) and Antonio Vendola (2 of 2) combined to keep the maroon and gold lead to double digits until the final buzzer sounded.

UP NEXT:

St. Thomas Aquinas College welcomes Pace University to Aquinas Hall on Saturday, December 17, with tip-off between the Spartans and Setters set for 3:00 p.m.