MEN'S BASKETBALL DEFEATS AMERICAN INTERNATIONAL COLLEGE, 74-64
SENIOR ONEIL MORGAN HONORED BEFORE THE GAME

PLEASANTVILLE, NY- In their final regular season game, the Pace University men's basketball team defeated Northeast-10 Conference foe American International College, 74-64, tonight at the Goldstein Health, Fitness and Recreation Center on the Pleasantville campus of Pace University. Lone senior Oneil Morgan (Kingston, Jamaica/Excelsior) (Kingston, Jamaica/Excelsior) was honored before tip-off as part of Senior Night. The Setters finish the season with an overall record of 19-11 and 15-7 in the NE-10, while the Yellow Jackets end the year at 15-12 overall and 13-9 in conference play.

The Setters took control of the game from the tip, following a three-pointer from freshman Carlos Howard (Fort Washington, MD/Gonzaga College High) (Fort Washington, MD/Gonzaga College High), and never looked back as Pace never trailed in the contest. The closest the Yellow Jackets would get was a tie at 9 with 14:19 remaining in the first half. Pace would use a 26-11 run following the tie to build a 15-point advantage, 35-20, their largest lead of the half. Ryan Williams (Centreville, VA/Paul VI) and Lawrence McGhee (Linden, NJ/Linden) (Linden, NJ/Linden) lead the run combining for 17 of the 26 points, scoring nine and eight points respectively. The Setters would take a 37-23 lead heading into the break. The stingy Pace defense held American International to just 28.1% (9-for-32) shooting from the field in the first half, including 2-for-9 from three.

Pace continued to build upon their lead in the second half as they took an 18-point lead, 63-45, with 8:04 remaining, on a three-point play from junior Gibraltar White (Gautier, MS/Gautier) (Gautier, MS/Gautier).  The Yellow Jackets would attempt a comeback as they chipped their deficit to six, 66-60, with 3:27 left in the ballgame with the help of a 15-3 run. Mike Troll led the run scoring 7 of the 15 points. The Setters would hold off any comeback attempt as Pace outscored AIC eight-to-four to finish off the game.

Leading the Setters to victory were Williams and White, who each scored 16 points. Williams went 5-for-13 from the field, including 4-for-10 from beyond the arc and 2-for-4 from the line, while White shot 6-for-13 from the field, including 1-for-5 from downtown and 3-for-5 from the charity stripe. McGhee and Desmond Quincy-Jones (Rye, NY/Rye) finished the night with 11 and 12 points respectively. McGhee also dished out five assists. Morgan grabbed a team-high nine rebounds, to go along with five points.

Leading the visiting Yellow Jackets was Vernon Dupree, who scored a team-high 15 points on 7-for-16 shooting from the field. Magen McNeil recorded a double-double with 10 points and a game-high 15 rebounds. Jenar Harrison also added 10 points, while Aikeem Vanderhorst recorded 13 rebounds.

With their win, the Setters clinch the second seed and a first round bye in the Northeast-10 Conference tournament. Pace will host a quarterfinal match-up on Monday, February 26^th. Tip-off is scheduled for 7:00 p.m. Opponent to be determined.