WEST HARTFORD, Conn. – The top-ranked Trinity College Men's Basketball team defeated host University of Saint Joseph, 72-68, in a non-conference clash at the James A. Calhoun Gymnasium Wednesday night. The Bantams rise to 6-0 on the season, while the Blue Jays slide to 3-4 overall.
 
What Happened:

• The Blue Jays offense opened hot, jumping to a 12-4 lead behind five points from Jakari Tertulien until the Bantams chipped away at the deficit with five straight points from Drew Lazarre, followed by a 10-6 run, capped by a pair of buckets from Jarrel Okorougo, to grab a 19-18 lead with 7:26 remaining in the first half.
• Knotted at 20-20 with 5:53 on the clock, Trinity closed the half with a 17-10 run, paced by six-point efforts from Okorougo and Jared Berry, to hold a 37-30 lead at the break.
• The Blue Jays battled back with an 11-6 run to open the second half, closing the gap to 43-41 with 16:03 to play.
• After back-to-back three-pointers from Roel Figueroa and Deivone Tanksley Jr put USJ ahead 48-47, the Bantams regained a 55-51 lead from the foul line with makes from Berry, Henry Vetter, and Lazarre.
• Lazarre netted five straight, along with buckets from Okorougo and Vetter as the Trinity lead expanded to 65-55, but the Blue Jays hung around with a 10-4 run to remain within two possessions with 2:35 on the clock.
• Down 70-65 with 18 seconds to play, Figueroa buried a three-pointer to put the Blue Jays with two points, 70-68, but Vetter jarred a pair of free throws, followed by a game-sealing steal from Okorougo to lock up the 72-68 win.

 
Inside the Numbers

• The Bantams shot 41.4% (24-of-58) from the field, 26.4% (4-of-15) from three-point, and 64.5% (20-of-31) from the foul line.
• Saint Joseph connected on 41.7% (20-of-48) from the floor, including 36.4% (8-of-22) from beyond the arc, and 87% (20-of-23) from the free throw stripe.
• Rebounds: Saint Joseph 42, Trinity 27
• Turnovers: Trinity 7, Saint Joseph 22
• Points in the Paint: Trinity 34, Saint Joseph 22
• Bench Points: Trinity 20, Saint Joseph 12
• Okorougo paced the Bantams offense with a game-high 19 points, shooting 9-of-14 from the field, with three assists, two rebounds and a game-high five steals.
• With tonight's effort, Okrougo became the 33rd player in program history to reach the 1,000 career point milestone.
• Lazarre poured in a season-high 18 points with a team-high five rebounds, Berry tallied 13 points and three rebounds, and Vetter posted nine points, three rebounds, three assists and three steals in the win.
• Figueroa and Lence Altenor led the Blue Jays with 15 points apiece, while Tanksley Jr logged a double-double with a game-high 12 rebounds and 11 points.
• Frederich Feldrappe dished out a game-high five assists with seven rebounds and six points in the loss.

 
Up Next:

• The Bantams will be back in action when they welcome Babson College to Ray Oosting Gymnasium on Saturday, December 6 at 2:00 p.m.
• All-time, Trinity owns a 6-4 record against the Beavers, dating back to their first meeting in 1983-84.
• Last season, the Beavers captured a 99-89 double-overtime victory against Trinity in Babson Park.