HOBOKEN, N.J. – Senior forward Jon Almonte (North Bergen, N.J./North Bergen) and Eric Stanley (New York, N.Y./Solebury Prep) scored 17 points each to lead Stevens Institute of Technology to an 82-81 win over the United States Merchant Marine Academy on Tuesday in a Skyline Conference game at the Canavan Arena.
Stevens earned its fourth straight win at home and its fifth win in eight games. The Ducks improve to 5-15 overall and 5-7 in Skyline play. Kings Point suffered only its second conference loss, falling to 13-7 overall and 9-2 in the conference.
Stevens, which led by 17 points at halftime (48-31), rallied late in the game to pull out the win. After Kings Point sophomore Josh Buck made one free throw with 2:28 left to give the Mariners a 73-72 lead, the Ducks recaptured the lead when Almonte connected on a 17-foot baseline jumper with 2:11 left. Almonte then went the length of the floor for a layup following a Kings Point miss to give Stevens a 76-73 lead with 1:45 remaining.
Kings Point cut the lead to one on three occasions, but Stevens answered each time. After Buck pulled the Mariners within 78-77 with two free throws at the 1:08 mark, freshman guard Floyd Morris (East Windsor, N.J./Peddie School) connected on a pair of free throws with 26 seconds left. Buck again made two free throws with 8.4 seconds remaining, but Almonte calmly sank a pair with 7.2 seconds left to give the Ducks an 82-79 lead. Kings Point senior Jason Bernick drove in for a layup with 0.7 seconds left to close the gap to one.
Stevens opened up a 48-31 halftime lead after shooting 62.5 percent (20-for-32) in the opening period. The Ducks also connected on 5-of-7 from 3-point range. Sophomore forward Dan Jordan (Point Pleasant, N.J./Point Pleasant) scored all of his season-high 12 points in the first half.
Kings Point continued to claw its way back in the second half. Trailing 68-61 with 6:37 left, junior guard Mark Medvetz scored nine straight points to give the Mariners a 70-68 lead with 3:42 to play. The game was tied three times in the next two minutes before Almonte gave the Ducks the lead for good. In finishing with 17 points, Almonte increased his career total to 995. He will look to become the 10th 1,000-point scorer in Stevens men’s basketball history on Saturday, February 8, when the Ducks travel to Mount St. Vincent for a 2 p.m. Skyline game.
Junior center Gabe Whitney led all scorers with 22 points before fouling out for Kings Point. Medvetz scored 21 while Buck contributed 18 points and nine rebounds.
Freshman guard Ryan Kander (Belle Harbor, N.Y./Xaverian) was the fifth Stevens starter in double figures, finishing with 11 points. Morris also scored 11 points with a season-high 12 assists.
