Toun Nets Career High 19 Points On Five Three Pointers, Stallworth, Smith Combine For 28 Points As Men's Basketball Continues Strong Start With 72-55 Non-League Victory Over Mercy

November 22, 2006

STONEHILL MEN'S BASKETBALL

Wednesday, November 22, 2006

Arena at Harbor Yard, Bridgeport, Conn.

FINAL: STONEHILL 72, MERCY 55

BRIDGEPORT, Conn.-- Senior Soap Toun (Cranston, R.I.) scored a career-high 19 points, including five three-pointers, to lead three players in double figures as Stonehill posted a 72-55 non-league college men's basketball victory over Mercy Wednesday evening at the Arena at Harbor Yard.

The Skyhawks, off to a 3-0 start for the third straight season, broke free of a 22-22 tie by scoring the final 10 points of the first half over a 5:28 stretch to grab a 32-22 lead at the break, and Stonehill used a pair of three-pointers by Toun and freshman Randall Stallworth (Toms River, N.J.) to quickly extend that margin to 15 points (40-25) in the first 2:31 following intermission. The Flyers (0-2) whittled their deficit back to nine points on a pair of occasions midway through the second half and trailed by 10 (50-40) with 10:19 to play before the Skyhawks used a decisive 18-6 run over a 5:06 stretch to take their largest lead of the night of 22 points at 68-46 on a three-pointer by freshman Nikola Stevanovic (Belgrade, Serbia), as Mercy got no closer than 15 points in the closing minutes of action.

Stallworth netted a career-high 15 points and dished off four assists in the win for Stonehill, which also received a double-double effort of 13 points and a game-high 10 rebounds from sophomore Nick Smith (Colonia, N.J.). Stevanovic and freshman AJ Rudowitz (Monroe Township, N.J.) each added eight points for the Skyhawks, who also received seven points from senior Lance Clarke (Cambridge, Mass.) and seven rebounds from sophomore Colin Scanlon (Centreville, Va.). Stonehill shot 46 percent from the field and connected for a season-high 12 three-pointers, as the Skyhawks held a 38-31 rebounding edge while committing only nine turnovers for the contest.

Senior Devon Mirjah (Bronx, N.Y.) paced Mercy in the scoring column with 15 points, while sophomore Michael Marin (Flushing, N.Y.) was also in double figures with 10 points for the Flyers, who also received nine points from junior Victor Sidberry (Bronx, N.Y.) and eight rebounds from junior Keiron Guy (Brooklyn, N.Y.). Mercy shot 41 percent from the field and hit six three-pointers.

Stonehill will be idle until next Wednesday evening when the Skyhawks host UMass Lowell in a re-match of last year's NCAA Northeast Regional championship game, as the Northeast-10 Conference outing at Merkert Gymnasium is set for 7:30 p.m. Mercy will host New Haven in an East Coast Conference match-up on Thursday, November 30th beginning at 7:00 p.m.