Philadelphia, PA – (2/3/2011) – In an emotional encounter Chestnut Hill College visited Holy Family University for this evening's Central Atlantic Collegiate Conference (CACC) challenge. The Tigers held a 37-31 halftime advantage and endured the Griffins second-half push to claim a narrow 64-63 victory. Sophomore Mark DiRugeris Jr. (Woodbury, NJ) fronted the Griffins to a nine-point, second-half lead, but the effort was not enough to overcome the Tigers this time.
Chestnut Hill College (8-11, 5-6) took the lead from Holy Family University (5-15, 3-7) at 6:44 with junior guard Uros Kovacevic (Kotor, Montenegro) hitting a three-point basket for a 24-23 advantage. The Griffins held the lead until the three-minute mark as the Tigers posted a 37-31 halftime lead on the energizing play of junior guard Tim Smith (Philadelphia, PA). DiRugeris spirited the Griffins out of the locker rooms, bringing Chestnut Hill College to 48-39 advantage and enticing the Tigers into two intentional fouls and a technical foul (11:42). Oddly, the officials' calls rejuvenated the Tigers, who rallied to tie the contest just less than three minutes later, 9:14. Play was tight until the five-minute mark when the Tigers began to separate toward victory. The Griffins played catch-up the rest of the way and fell one point short on a botched, last-second inbound.
Smith commanded his home court, leading the Tigers with 16 points and nine assists. Sophomore guard Khiry Hankins (Cincinnati, OH) was the benefactor finishing with 21 points while junior forward Sam Mushman (Hackettstown, NJ) added 11 points off the bench.
DiRugeris scored 12 points in the opening half and finished he finished with 23 points by shooting 6-for-13 (46.2%) from the field and 8-for-9 (88.9%) from the free throw line. He also handed out five assists and made three steals in the affair. Junior center Dan Comas (Philadelphia, PA) totaled 14 points and eight rebounds while sophomore guard Francis Ashe (Greenbelt, MD) provided nine points, seven rebounds, and three assists.
The men's basketball team welcomes Felician College to campus on Saturday, February 5, for a 3:00 p.m. CACC contest.
