Sparkill, N.Y. - The St. Thomas Aquinas College Men's Basketball team earned its third straight trip to the East Coast Conference Tournament Final with an 84-64 triumph over Roberts Wesleyan College on Saturday afternoon at Aquinas Hall. 

STAC climbs to 25-4 on the season, winning its 13th straight contest, while Roberts Wesleyan closes their 2021-22 campaign at 12-13.

The victory advances the Spartans to their eighth ECC Tournament Final in the last nine seasons, which will be held at Aquinas Hall on Sunday, March 6, against No. 2 seed Daemen College in a 2:30 pm tip. PURCHASE TICKETS HERE

Sean Moore paced the STAC offense with 18 points, while Demetre Roberts (15 points) and Grant Singleton (15 points) also scored in double figures. Kevon Wright led all scorers with 21 points for Roberts Wesleyan. 

St. Thomas Aquinas shot 49.3 percent from the field (34-69), while Roberts Wesleyan shot 38.3 percent (23-60) from the floor.

STAC NOTES AND HIGHLIGHTS:

• Nine players recorded double-digit minutes in the contest. 
• DeVante Jamison led the Spartans with seven assists on the afternoon.
• Sean Moore made 8 of his 10 field goal attempts, while Grant Singleton went 7-for-11 from the floor.
• St. Thomas Aquinas out rebounded Roberts Wesleyan 41-34 in 40 minutes of action, with Jamal Barnes and Elijah Bovell grabbing six boards apiece for the Spartans.
• STAC picked up 12 steals in the contest, with the Roberts Wesleyan turning the ball over on 23 separate occasions.
• The Spartans earned advantages in five team statistical categories over the Redhawks: Points off Turnovers (18-7), Second Chance Points (17-6), Points in the Paint (50-24), Fastbreak Points (8-2) and Bench Points (24-9).

HOW IT HAPPENED:

• STAC would open an early 3-0 advantage with a quick trey from Demetre Roberts, before Roberts Wesleyan would gain a lead with Rian Carter hitting a jumper and a three to make it 5-3 Redhawks.
• The Spartans tied the game and took two five-point advantages (10-5 and 12-7), before STAC would expand it's advantage to 42-17 at the 2:44 mark via a 30-10 run over a 13 and a half minute span.
• St. Thomas Aquinas closed the half with a made free throw by DeVante Jamison and three made foul shots by Demetre Roberts to take a 46-19 advantage into the locker room at the break.
• Demetre Roberts led all scorers with 13 first half points for STAC, while Ja'Kair Sanchez, Shane Fanning and Rian Carter all recorded with five points for Roberts Wesleyan.
• Following halftime, the host Spartans continued to hold multiple double digit leads of 20 or more points in the contest.
• STAC scored on almost every trip down the floor, answering any attempts of a Redhawks rally late to take the victory and advance to the tournament final.
• Sean Moore (16 points) and Grant Singleton (10 points) provided the offense for the Spartans in the stanza, while Kevon Wright scored all 21 of his points in the second half.

UP NEXT:

The Spartans and Wildcats face off for the third time this season on Sunday. In the previous two regular season matchups, each team picked up a victory on each other's home court. On January 21 at Aquinas Hall, the visiting Wildcats had three score in double figures (Kyle Harris - 19pts, Sean Fasoyiro - 15pts and Andrew Sischo - 12pts), snapping the Spartans eight-game win streak with a 73-61 victory. In the series finale on February 18 at Lumsden Gymnasium, a nip and tuck affair would go to overtime, when a Demetre Roberts late free-throw would send the game into the extra period. In OT, STAC got clutch shooting from DeVante Jamison, Roberts and Grant Singleton to outscore Daemen 18-13 to take a 75-70 triumph.

2022 EAST COAST CONFERENCE MEN'S BASKETBALL TOURNAMENT

First Round – Wednesday, March 2 at campus sites
7:00 p.m. - No. 5 Roberts Wesleyan 90 at No. 4 Queens 72
7:00 p.m. - No. 6 District of Columbia 69 at No. 3 Molloy 76

Semifinals – Saturday, March 5 at St. Thomas Aquinas
12:00 p.m. - No. 5 Roberts Wesleyan 64 vs. No. 1 St. Thomas Aquinas 84
3:30 p.m. - No. 3 Molloy 70 vs. No. 2 Daemen 85

Final – Sunday, March 6 at St. Thomas Aquinas
2:30 p.m. - #1 St. Thomas Aquinas vs. #2 Daemen (PURCHASE TICKETS HERE)