The St. Thomas Aquinas College men's basketball team pulled away for an 86-55 victory over Queens College in an East Coast Conference tilt at Aquinas Hall. STAC has now won seven straight and 12-of-15 overall to improve to 14-8 overall, retaining a share of first place with an 11-2 ECC mark. Queens lost its sixth in the last seven games, falling to 4-16 overall, 4-9 in conference.

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Queens, coming off an upset victory over Daemen College on Saturday, carried that confidence into the early minutes, scoring the games first points and jumping to a 9-2 lead. The Spartans gained their bearings, though the visitors held a 14-11 lead with 14 minutes left in the first half.

Utilizing a high-tempo offense and stifling pressure defense, STAC shut down the Knights' offense, not allowing a field goal for over 10 minutes and keeping the visitors off the board entirely for a span of 8:17. The startling 22-1 run blew the tight contest open, with the Spartans grabbing a 33-15 lead.

STAC carried a 38-25 advantage as the second half commenced, and that was as close as Queens was to get. The visitors held their own over the first five minutes yet still trailed, 46-31. Once again, the Spartans would receive contributions from many sources in a 30-12 outburst that opened a 33-point chasm, allowing the hosts to cruise to their second straight victory in excess of 30 points, the two most lopsided decisions in the ECC this season.

Chaz Watler netted a game-high 15 points and Shaq McFarlan added 11 as the only Spartans in double-figures but everyone played a role, with 13 different players hitting the score sheet. Kyheim Chaplin paced the Knights with 11 points as STAC owned the glass to the tune of a 44-27 gap.

The Spartans hit the floor on Saturday, February 7, when they host Molloy College in another ECC battle. The men's game starts at 3:30 pm, as the back end of a double-header featuring the women's teams tipping off at 1:00 pm.