The St. Thomas Aquinas College men's basketball team went on the road and came up with a big win, 79-73 at the University of the District of Columbia in an East Coast Conference showdown. The victory was the Spartans' third straight. boosting their record to 10-8 overall and 6-6 in conference, with UDC dropping to 3-14, 1-10.

With the win, the Spartans also retain possession of the sixth and final playoff slot in the ECC standings.

Despite starting the game in last place in the conference, the hosts took charge early, jumping to a 7-0 lead and eventually opening their margin to 12-4 after six minutes of play. After a time out, the Spartans hit their stride and quickly took charge, with a 14-2 outburst staking the visitors to an 18-14 lead.

A Marcus Henderson trey with eight minutes left put the Spartans up by a 23-16 edge, and a pair of Chaz Watler hoops keyed an 8-2 burst to put the visitors in a 31-20 lead. The Firebirds would draw back as close as seven points before trailing at the half, 42-33.

After a Watler basket made the score 50-39 with 15 minutes left, UDC put on a push of their own, reeling off a 16-1 run to grab a 55-51 lead midway through the second half. STAC would respond quickly, with an Eli Maravich hoop putting his team back in the lead at 57-55 less than a minute later.

From there, the battle was engaged with the lead changing hands until the score stood deadlocked at 67-67 with three minutes to play. Watler hit two big baskets and Maravich added another as the Spartans jumped ahead, 73-67 in the final minute. Maravich added a pair of free throws and Henderson added four more in the waning seconds as STAC held on for the win.

Watler led STAC in scoring with 20 points, Omar Kellman added 12, Henderson posted 11, and Alshula Odongo 10 to secure the victory. Lenjo Kilo was a standout for the Firebirds with a game-high 28 points, with teammate Omar Abbas adding 16.

The Spartans quest for an ECC Tournament berth continues with a pair of big home games this week at Aquinas Hall. On Monday, February 3, they host Molloy College in an 8:00 start, and Wednesday, February 5 features the University of Bridgeport paying a call. Both are ECC match-ups and are the back end of twin-bills starting with the women's teams.