The St. Thomas Aquinas College men's basketball team inched closer to an East Coast Conference Tournament berth with a 74-60 win over New York Institute of Technology at Aquinas Hall. Alushula Odongo paced the Spartans with a game-high 18 points as his squad improved to 12-11 overall and 8-9 in the ECC with their fifith win in eight games.

NYIT dropped to 9-14, 7-10 and stands in the sixth and final ECC Tourney slot, with STAC taking sole possession of fifth place. STAC also saw its magic number to clinch a tournament bid drop to one - any Spartan win or Queens College loss would guarantee STAC's first tourney appearance since the 2008-09 season. The Spartans stand two games behind LIU-Post for the #4 slot, which would mean a first round home playoff game.

STAC set the tone early on, grabbing an 8-0 lead in just over three minutes and holding the Bears scoreless for the first 5:26 of play. Aaron Cust's second trey of the game capped a 14-2 run, putting the hosts in a comfortable 22-6 lead near the midway point of the half.

Tech finally got the offense in gear and utilized an 8-0 run to trim their deficit to 31-24 but the Spartans reeled off the next six points before taking a 41-28 lead into the halftime locker room.

More of the same was in store in the second half, as the Spartans opened their gap to as many as 17 points. While NYIT was able to draw as close as 57-48 midway through the second session, a 9-2 answer doused the threat and STAC was not threatened in closing out the triumph. Odongo posted his game-high tally in spite of fouling out of the game with over nine minutes to play.

In addition to Odongo - who posted a game-high 27 points at Molloy on Saturday - Chaz Watler and Kellman tossed in 15 points each, with Cust adding 10. Jahleel Felix was one of four NYIT players in double-figures, leading his team with 13 points. STAC's guard play was the story of the night, dishing out 18 assists while turning the ball over just six times on the night, only two in the second half.

The Spartans close out the regular season with a road game this Saturday, February 22 at LIU-Post at 3:00 pm before finishing up with a pair at home. On Monday, February 24, Molloy College visits Aquinas Hall for a 7:30 pm start, and Roberts Wesleyan will be the opponent on Senior Day - Sunday, March 2 - in a 3:00 pm tipoff.