PLEASANTVILLE, N.Y.- The Setters posted a huge first half performance en-route to a 20-point win over the Yellow Jackets of American International College as a pair of players set personal highs in the contest. Pace won 68-48 to even their record at 10-10 and 8-8 in the Northeast-10 Conference as they sit alone in seventh place in the NE-10. The Yellow Jackets fall to 6-14 and 4-12 in conference play.
The teams traded leads over the first 12 minutes but the Setters got on a run to take control of the game. Pace used a 15-0 run to pull into the lead as a 13-12 Setter lead quickly ballooned to a 28-12 advantage. David Eismeier (Burke, VA/Bishop O'Connell) (Burke, VA/Bishop O'Connell) started the run with a triple, while Justin Alston (Bronx, NY/St. Raymond) (Bronx, NY/St. Raymond) shined as he totaled 10 points in the rally with a pair of trifectas.
American International hit a couple of shots late but a triple by Denzel Primus-Devonish (Riverdale, MD/St. John's College) (Riverdale, MD/St. John's College) at the buzzer matched the Setters' largest lead of the game at 16 points as they headed into the break with a 33-17 lead. Pace shot 5-for-9 from three-point range in the half with Alston going a perfect 3-for-3 from deep, good for 13 points in the half.
The Yellow Jackets got their closest in the second half in the first six minutes as they pulled to within 12 points at 35-23. The Setters rallied with a 12-2 run as Alston and Primus-Devonish each netted a triple as Pace pushed their lead back over 20 points at 47-25 with 10 minutes to play in the game. The Setters cruised down the stretch and won going away by 20 points. The Setters were able to take advantage of 20 turnovers by American International as Pace scored 29 points off Yellow Jacket turnovers for the game.
For the Setters, Alston led all scorers as he tallied 19 points on 5-for-9 shooting from downtown. Primus-Devonish set a personal best with 11 assists, while senior Delroy Daley (Bronx, NY/St. Raymond) (Bronx, NY/St. Raymond) was a force in the paint as he set a career-high with 16 rebounds (five offensive). Keon Williams (Hackensack, NJ/Hackensack/Iona College) (Hackensack, NJ/Hackensack/Iona College) totaled 10 points and seven rebounds along with two steals. Kai Smith (Upper Marlboro, MD/St. Mary's Ryken) went 6-for-8 from the field as he posted a solid 16 points in the victory.
The Setters return to action on Saturday, February 4 as Pace will travel to West Haven, CT for a pivotal Northeast-10 Conference game against the Chargers of New Haven at 3:30 pm. Pace trails New Haven for sixth place by one game in the NE-10 as they Chargers are 9-7 in the NE-10.
