ALBANY – The College of Saint Rose men's basketball team limited visiting Southern Connecticut State University to just seven field goals in the first half en route to a 67-51 Northeast-10 Conference victory this afternoon at the Daniel P. Nolan Gymnasium. In the process, the Golden Knights won their 11th straight against the Owls, who were winless in their four-game road trip to start the 2008-09 campaign.

Junior guard Jermaine Clark led three players in double-figures for Saint Rose (1-2/1-1 NE-10) with a game-high 18 points. Clark knocked down 4-of-6 shots from beyond the arc and also came up with a pair of steals in the contest. Senior forward Evan Lane added 12 points to go with a career-high six blocks and five rebounds, while senior guard Josh Pelletier contributed 10 points, a career-high six assists, five steals and four caroms.

Southern (0-4/0-2 NE-10) received 16 points from senior guard Derrick Corbett. Additionally, junior center John Mazzarella and freshman forward Kieran Ramsey each recorded “double-doubles”. Mazzarella tossed in 10 points and hauled in 15 rebounds, while Ramsey tossed in 10 points and a like number of boards.

The Golden Knights connected on four of their first five shots and never trailed in the game. Pelletier finished in the paint, which preceded back-to-back 3-pointers by Clark that gave Saint Rose an early 8-2 edge. The Owls managed to close the gap to two, 8-7, following a pair of free throws by Mazzarella and a trey from Corbett. However, the Golden Knights used a 13-2 outburst that was punctuated by a Lane Layup and afforded them a 21-9 advantage with 13:37 left.

Though Southern could only muster five field goals the rest of the way, the Owls cut their deficit to four, 29-25. Saint Rose again found an answer by outscoring Southern 9-1 throughout the final 4:25 of the first period that was capped off by a Clark layup with five seconds on the clock.

The Golden Knights, who never led by less than eight points throughout the final 20 minutes, generated a 36-20 margin in the paint and turned 20 Southern turnovers into 23 points to end a mild two-game winless streak to start the 2008-09 slate.

Saint Rose will step out of conference on Monday when the Golden Knights entertain Concordia College at 7:30 pm. Meanwhile, the Owls return home for a NE-10 affair versus Pace University at 7:30 pm Tuesday. 

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