Amherst, N.Y. - A 27-18 run over the final eight minutes, broke a 64-64 tie and propelled the St. Thomas Aquinas College Men's Basketball team to its sixth straight ECC title game with a 91-82 victory over Queens College in the semifinal round of the conference tournament, held on Saturday evening at Lumsden Gymnasium on the campus of Daemen University in Western New York.

No. 2 STAC improves to 23-8 overall and will face top-seed and hosts Daemen University in the East Coast Conference Men's Basketball Tournament Final on Sunday afternoon (3:30 p.m.) in Amherst. Daemen defeated No. 5 College of Staten Island, 90-57 in the other semifinal matchup. Meanwhile, Queens closes out its 2024-2025 campaign at 13-17.

Luis Risquez led the way for St. Thomas Aquinas with a team-high 24 points, while also eclipsing the 1,000 career point mark as a Spartan. Teammates Shaun Arnold (15 points), Derrick James (15 points) and Deshawne Crim (12 points) also posted double figures in scoring. Shamar Chester led all scorers tallying 30 points for the Knights.

STAC shot 42.5 percent (34-80) from the field, while Queens shot 43.9 percent (25-57) from the floor.

STAC NOTES AND HIGHLIGHTS:

• Eight Spartans logged double-digit minutes in the contest. 
• Derrick James led the maroon and gold with five assists on the night.
• Luis Risquez hit 10 of his 15 field goal attempts, with 2-of-3 buckets going in from beyond the arc, and 2-of-6 free throws. Shaun Arnold went 6-of-14 from the floor and 3-for-4 from the charity stripe.
• STAC out-rebounded Queens by a 50-36 margin, with Shaun Arnold also grabbing a game-high 11 boards for the Spartans.
• St. Thomas Aquinas swiped 11 steals, with the Knights turning the ball over on 21 separate occasions.
• The Spartans earned advantages in four team statistical categories over Queens: Points off Turnovers (21-18), Second Chance Points (35-10), Points in the Paint (60-30) and Bench Points (29-16).
• The game featured ten ties and 18 lead changes.
• STAC's largest lead of the game came with just over three and a half minutes to play in the contest, when Spartans led by 14 points, 78-64, on a Shaun Arnold layup.
• Luis Risquez led all Spartans scorers with 13 first half points, while shooting 60.0 percent (6-of-10) from the floor and 50.0 percent (1-for-2) from three-point.
• STAC's best shooting half came in the second stanza as the Spartans shot 41.9 percent (13-31) from the field and 75.0 percent (12-16) from the foul line, while outscoring Queens 52-41.
• St. Thomas Aquinas has now won 18 straight contests against Queens College going back to January 27, 2016.

QUEENS NOTES AND HIGHLIGHTS:

• Seven Knights logged double-digit minutes in the contest. 
• Shamar Chester led Queens with 30 points, while Damiri Lindo (17 points), Eric Tynes (16 points) and Nasan Ayala (10 points) also scored in double figures.
• Lindo also led Queens with four assists on the evening.
• Chester went 8-for-15 from the floor and 13-of-15 from the free throw line. Meanwhile, Lindo went 7-for-17 from the field.
• Omari Byrd grabbed a game-high 11 boards for the Knights.
• Queens picked up seven steals, with the Spartans turning the ball over on 13 separate occasions.
• The Knights earned one advantage in the team statistical categories over St. Thomas Aquinas: Fastbreak Points (10-8).
• Queens' largest lead of the game came with just over 15 minutes to play in the contest, when Knights led by eight points, 51-43, on a Eric Tynes free throw.
• Queens led STAC 41-39 going into the halftime locker room and shot 46.2 percent (12-26) from the floor and 93.3 percent (14-15) from the free throw line.
• Shamar Chester led all scorers with 14 first half points for the Knights, while shooting 80.0 percent (4-for-5) from field and 85.7 percent (6-of-7) from the charity stripe.

UP NEXT:

#2 STAC and #1 Daemen will square off in the ECC Men's Basketball Tournament Final on Sunday afternoon, with an automatic bid to the NCAA Division II Tournament on the line. The teams will lock horns for the fifth straight title game, with the Spartans winning the previous four. The Wildcats swept the two-game regular season series in 2024-25, taking the first meeting at Lumsden Gymnasium, 84-55 on December 13 while also winning the rematch at Aquinas Hall, 65-54 on February 7.