Staten Island, N.Y. - The St. Thomas Aquinas College Men's Basketball team kicked off its 2023-2024 campaign on Friday evening at the College of Staten Island Tournament of Heroes, taking on Southern New Hampshire University at Dolphins Gymnasium on Staten Island. A battle between East Region powers went down to the wire with the Spartans prevailing 88-81 over the Penmen.

STAC moves to 1-0 overall, while SNHU falls to 0-1.

James Patterson and Kyle Pulliam each led the way for the Spartans, posting 21 points apiece, while teammate Rich Smith recorded 15 points.

STAC shot 50.0 percent from the field (30-60), while SNHU shot 46.6 percent (27-58) from the floor.

STAC NOTES AND HIGHLIGHTS:

• Ten Spartans recorded double-digit minutes in the contest. 
• Rich Smith led the maroon and gold with four assists on the evening.
• James Patterson made 7 of his 15 field goal attempts, while Kyle went 7-for-11 from the floor and a perfect 4 for 4 from beyond the arc.
• SNHU out-rebounded STAC by a 32-23 margin, with Patterson grabbing a team-high seven boards for the Spartans.
• St. Thomas Aquinas picked up nine steals, with the Penmen turning the ball over on 20 separate occasions.
• The Spartans earned advantages in four team statistical categories over Southern New Hampshire: Points off Turnovers (23-4), Points in the Paint (34-28), Fastbreak Points (6-5) and Bench Points (27-24).
• The game featured eight ties and nine lead changes.

HOW IT HAPPENED:

• The first half opened with a fury, as the teams combined for nine points, before Southern New Hampshire went on 10 run to take a 14-5 lead at the 15:53 mark.
• Kyle Pulliam, James Patterson and Zion Ruckard combined to cut the deficit to just three (14-11).
• The see-saw play continued with STAC getting within two points at 22-20 and SNHU unable to build a lead bigger than five points as the teams hit the midway mark of the half.
• Down six with a little over six minutes to play before halftime, a James Patterson three-point play and five straight points by Rich Smith tied the score at 32-32.
• A Luis Rizquez layup with 3:50 to play before the break finally gave the maroon and gold its first lead of the day, 36-34.
• A final 9-4 run by the Spartans gave them a 45-38 lead at the half.
• James Patterson led St. Thomas Aquinas with 10 first half points, while Kurtis Henderson matched Patterson, scoring 10 points of his own for Southern New Hampshire.
• When the teams made there way back to the court for second half action, it would be the Penmen who would rally back with three straight threes to pull within one at 48-47.
• However, a Jamal Barnes layup would give the Spartans a brief bit of daylight at 50-47.
• A three-point play by Southern New Hampshire tied things at 50-50, but Luis Rizquez would quickly flip the scoreboard back in favor of STAC with a jumper to make it 52-50.
• Another trey by the Penmen gave them back the lead, but a Kyle Pulliam three-point play, followed by a James Patterson jump put the Spartans back on top by four at 57-53.
• The teams would trade buckets and flip the scoreboard on numerous occasions over the next six minutes. 
• Tied at 66, James Patterson's layup and Rich Smith's layup and free throw gave the maroon and gold a 71-66 advantage with just under eight minutes to play.
• A 5-2 run by STAC made it a 76-68 game, but SNHU continued to battle back with a pair of Penmen free throws cutting the deficit to just four (76-72).
• James Patterson extended the Spartans lead to seven (79-72) when he drained a three with 4:30 left in the stanza.
• The story of the final three minutes would be STAC answering every SNHU bucket with one of their own. James Patterson, Jamal Barnes, Rich Smith and Kyle Pulliam scored the final nine points to counter the Penmen's nine-point surge of their own to take the opener 88-81.

UP NEXT:

STAC wraps up play at the 2023 CSI Tournament of Heroes on Saturday, November 12 (Noon), taking on Saint Anselm College at Dolphins Gymnasium on Staten Island.