Sparkill, N.Y. - Six Spartans tallied double-digit points on Monday, as the St. Thomas Aquinas College Men's Basketball team posted a 109-74 victory over The College of Saint Rose in an afternoon matinee game at Aquinas Hall.

STAC improves to 11-2 on the season, while Saint Rose falls to 7-7 overall.

Jamal Barnes led the Spartans with 18 points, while teammates Antonio Vendola (17 points), Kyle Jones (12 points), James Patterson (10 points), DeVante Jamison (10 points) and Jordan Green (10 points) also scored in double-figures.

STAC shot 51.3 percent from the field (39-76) and 56.3 percent from beyond the arc (18-32) while Saint Rose shot 42.0 percent (29-69) from the floor.

STAC NOTES AND HIGHLIGHTS:

• Ten Spartans recorded double-digit minutes in the contest. 
• DeVante Jamison led the maroon and gold with seven assists on the day.
• Jamal Barnes made 6 of his 11 field goal attempts, with six sailing through the net from three. Meanwhile, Antonio Vendola also went 6-for-9 from the floor, with five going in from behind the three-point line.
• STAC out rebounded Saint Rose 43-40 in the non-conference tilt, with James Patterson and Kyle Jones grabbing a team-high seven boards apiece.
• St. Thomas Aquinas picked up 14 steals, with the Golden Knights turning the ball over on 20 separate occasions.
• The Spartans earned advantages in three team statistical categories over Saint Rose: Points off of Turnovers (25-19), Second Chance Points (20-15) and Bench Points (44-16).
• The game featured one tie and one lead change.

HOW IT HAPPENED:

• After missing their initial offensive opportunities, the sides battled to flip the scoreboard back and forth over the first two minutes.
• STAC built advantages of 8-4, 11-6, 16-8, with Saint Rose cutting into its deficits each time.
• Following a Golden Knights free-throw, the Spartans rattled off nine straight points via Kyle Jones, Jordan Green, Jamal Barnes and James Patterson to take a 25-9 lead and force the visitors to call a timeout in order to rally the troops.
• Saint Rose would respond to their coach's rally cry, but the Spartans would make sure they responded too, matching the visitors offensive output.
• Late in the first half, the Golden Knights would finally cut its deficit to single digits on the strength of hot shooting, along with miscues by the hosts.
• A three-pointer by Saint Rose brought the margin to just three, at 54-51 with 24 seconds before halftime. However, a Kyle Jones bucket at the buzzer put STAC's advantage back to five, 56-51 at the break.
• Jamal Barnes paced the Spartans offense with 12 first-half points, while Eric Fleming led all scorers with 19 points for the Golden Knights.
• Following the intermission, the teams continued their chess match, keeping the game within reach for Saint Rose over the opening three minutes of the new half.
• Then, a 13-point streak by St. Thomas Aquinas on the strength of a trio of treys by Antonia Vendola, Vasilis Tolias and Luis Risquez, put the maroon and gold ahead 81-59 with 13 minutes to play.
• STAC continued its hot shooting throughout the rest of the stanza, hitting the 100-point mark (100-72) with a little over two and a half left in the second half, while keeping any damage by Saint Rose to a minimum.
• The Spartans reached its largest lead of the game (35 points), as Ethan Millirons hit from downtown with 18 seconds remaining to make it 109-74, which would be the final score.

UP NEXT:

Following the mandatory seven-day NCAA Division II Holiday Break, STAC closes out 2022 by visiting Adelphi University on Thursday, December 29. Opening tip between the Spartans and Panthers is set for 2:00 p.m. at the Center for Recreation and Sport in Garden City, N.Y.