Box Score

HOBOKEN, N.J. (January 31, 2014) – Junior forward Patrick Sabatino (Westfield, N.J.) scored 30 points on 13-of-19 shooting to help the Stevens Institute of Technology men's basketball team to a key 76-59 Empire 8 win over St. John Fisher College Friday night at the Canavan Arena.
 
Stevens improves to 13-5 overall with the win and 7-2 in the conference. St. John Fisher is now 5-4 in the Empire 8 and 11-8 overall.
 
The 30 points were a new career-high for the junior who also added five rebounds, four blocks and three assists to his line. Senior guard Matt Skrelja (Clark, N.J.) had an excellent evening as well with 13 points, 10 rebounds, five assists and five steals, with senior guard Andrew Meszaros (Phoenixville, Pa.) and sophomore guard Evan Klimchak (Readington, N.J.) each scoring 11 points. Meszaros added eight rebounds to his line, while junior forward Kenny Gan (Hillsborough, N.J.) was strong all-around for Stevens with a game-best nine assists in addition to five points, six rebounds and a pair of steals.
 
Fisher opened a four-point lead with 18:15 remaining in regulation, but the Ducks responded with an 8-0 run to swing the momentum and the lead for good. Gan found Sabatino for a layup, and Skrelja forced a turnover and tied the game on the next possession. Skrelja then found Klimchak for a three-pointer to give Stevens the lead, and Skrelja recorded another theft before finding Sabatino underneath for a layup, making the score 39-34 with 16:39 left.
 
The Cardinals would close within one 2:25 later, but a jumper from Sabatino and a Meszaros three-pointer from the right wing gave the Ducks a six-point cushion. Fisher closed within two, but another clutch Meszaros three kept the momentum from shifting, and after another Skrelja steal, freshman forward Michael Signer (Rockaway, N.J.) canned a huge three from the right wing for an eight-point lead. Senior guard Phillip DeSeignora (Boston, Mass.) made it three-straight Stevens three's over a span of 1:37 to turn a two-point lead to 11 as the Cardinals could not get closer than seven the rest of the way.
 
The Ducks hit a total of 11 triples on the night (11-for-21), including a remarkable 8-of-10 in the second half. Stevens also committed just 10 turnovers, while dishing out 22 assists on its 31 made baskets. The Ducks also held a 37-33 edge on the glass, shooting 31-for-64 (48.4 percent) from the floor (19-for-30 in the second half).
 
The first half featured big runs from each squad, with the Ducks taking an early 12-2 lead behind three three-pointers from Sabatino. Fisher answered with a 17-7 run of its own, knotting the score at 19-all with 7:23 left in the opening period.
 
The Cardinals opened a 25-21 edge following a three-pointer from sophomore guard Tyler Hart (Greenbush, N.Y.), but the Ducks answered, ripping off seven-straight points to regain the advantage at 28-25 with 3:13 on the clock.
 
St. John Fisher held Stevens scoreless for the final three-plus minutes, and eventually took a 29-28 edge into the break after another triple from Hart and 1-of-2 at the line from junior guard Stefan Bock (Staten Island, N.Y.).

Fisher shot 40 percent from the floor (22-for-55)m 6-for-25 from three (24 percent) and 9-for-13 fom the line (69.2 percent).

 
Stevens will host Nazareth College in another key conference game Saturday at 4:30 p.m. Nazareth earned a big conference win at Hartwick Friday night to move to 6-2 in the Empire 8. All the action will be webcast live on www.Empire8.TV from the Canavan Arena.