Amherst, N.Y. - The St. Thomas Aquinas College Men's Basketball team dropped its second straight contest on Friday evening, falling to Daemen University, 87-82, at Lumsden Gymnasium in Western New York.

STAC slips to 19-5 overall and 10-2 in the ECC, while Daemen improves to 18-7 and 8-4. The teams have now split their regular season series, with the Spartans only holding a one-game lead in the standings over the College of Staten Island for first place.

Despite falling to the Wildcats, the Spartans saw yet another major milestone achieved by one of its players. Sophomore James Patterson scored his 1,000th career point in the contest, becoming the second member of the men's basketball program to hit the prestigious mark this season (Jamal Barnes - January 21, 2024 vs. D'Youville University).

Kyle Pulliam led the way for the Spartans with a game-high 30 points, while teammate James Patterson (21pts) also posted double figures in scoring.

STAC shot 48.3 percent (29-60) from the field and 50.0 percent (9-of-18) from long range, while Daemen shot 40.4 percent (23-57) from the floor.

STAC NOTES AND HIGHLIGHTS:

• Eight Spartans logged double-digit minutes in the contest.
• Rich Smith and Zion Ruckard led the maroon and gold with three assists apiece on the evening.
• Kyle Pulliam hit 9 of his 15 field goal attempts, with 3-of-4 going in from downtown, and went 9-for-11 from the free throw line. Meanwhile, James Patterson went 6-for-15 from the floor and 6-of-7 from the charity stripe.
• STAC out-rebounded Daemen by a 39-30 margin, with Lawrence Foreman grabbing a game-high 10 boards for the Spartans.
• St. Thomas Aquinas picked up five steals, with the Wildcats turning the ball over on 10 separate occasions.
• The Spartans earned advantages in two team statistical categories over Daemen: Points in the Paint (30-18) and Fastbreak Points (16-9).
• The game featured three ties and eight lead changes.
• STAC's largest lead of the contest came early in the middle of the first half, when the Spartans led by 20 points, 37-17 on a made Kyle Pulliam Layup.
• James Patterson's career 1,000-point milestone moment came with 8:46 to play in the first half, when he converted on a three-point jumper to make it 33-17 STAC.
• St. Thomas Aquinas took a 51-43 lead into the halftime locker room. The team shot a red-hot 63.3 percent (19-of-30) from the floor, 54.5 percent (6-for-11) from three and 87.5 percent (7-of-8) from the free throw line.
• Kyle Pulliam led the Spartans with 15 points in the opening half, while shooting 66.6 percent (6-of-9) from the field.

DAEMEN NOTES AND HIGHLIGHTS:

• Seven Wildcats logged double-digit minutes in the contest. 
• Dylan Fasoyiro led Daemen with 23 points, while teammates Joey Atkins (15pts), Justin Glover (14pts) and Andrew Mason (14pts) also scored in double digits.
• Justin Glover and Nick MacDonald led Daemen with a five assists apiece on the night.
• Dylan Fasoyiro went 6-of-15 from the floor, with 5-of-10 sailing through the nets from long range. He also was a perfect 6-for-6 from the charity stripe. 
• Joey Atkins and Zach Philipkoski each grabbing a team-high six boards for the Wildcats.
• Daemen picked up 10 steals, with the Spartans turning the ball over on 16 separate occasions.
• The Wildcats earned advantages in two team statistical categories over St. Thomas Aquinas: Points off Turnovers (20-4) and Bench Points (12-10).
• Daemen's largest lead of the contest came in the closing moments of regulation, when the Wildcats led by eight points, 85-77 on a pair of made free throws by Zach Philipkoski.
• Dylan Fasoyiro led all scorers with 17 first half points for the Wildcats, while shooting 55.5 percent (5-of-9) from the floor and 71.4 percent (5-for-7) from three.
• Daemen outscored STAC 44-31 in the second half, with the hosts going on a 19-10 run over the first 11:30 of the stanza to pull ahead 62-61 with 8:30 to play in regulation.
• Trailing 69-68, the Wildcats picked up 14 points (7-for-7) at the free throw line over the final 3:05 of the contest, while also hitting a three-point jumper and a two-point bucket to take the five-point victory.

UP NEXT:

St. Thomas Aquinas visits D'Youville University on Sunday, February 18, with the Spartans and Saints squaring off at 3:00 p.m. inside of the College Center Gym in Buffalo, N.Y.