SPRINGFIELD, MA – The Pace University men's basketball team erased a double-digit halftime deficit to take a second half lead, but were upended 66-59 by the American International Yellow Jackets in a Northeast-10 Conference contest.

Seniors Denzel Primus-Devonish (Riverdale, MD/St. John's College) (Riverdale, MD/St. John's College) and Jonathan Merceus (Union, NJ/Union) (Union, NJ/Union)led the Setters with 16 points each. Primus-Devonish chipped in with six assists while Merceus had seven rebounds. Senior guard Kai Smith (Upper Marlboro, MD/St. Mary's Ryken) (Upper Marlboro, MD/St. Mary's Ryken) added 10 points. Senior forward Jamaal James (Brooklyn, NY/Brooklyn College Academy) (Brooklyn, NY/Brooklyn College Academy) led Pace with eight rebounds.

The two squads played evenly through the first 7:30 of the contest as AIC led 11-10. The Yellow Jackets went on a 7-0 spurt to open up an eight point lead that they maintained through the remainder of the half and eventually went into the locker room at halftime leading 32-22.

Pace immediately went to work cutting into the deficit to open the second half. Primus-Devonish scored the first points of the frame just 12 seconds in on a layup. That sparked the Setters on a 27-16 run during the next 12:24 as Pace took a 49-48 lead on a Merceus free throw at the 8:28 mark of the second. Getting to the line was key for Pace as in addition to shooting 9-for-17 from the floor to open up the half, the Setters hit 7-of-10 free throws while AIC went 1-for-4 during the same stretch.

Down the stretch, the two teams battled with neither holding more than a three point lead for the next six minutes. With 2:16 remaining, Pace went on top 58-56 on a jumper from senior guard Ahmad George (Bowie, MD/Archbishop Carroll). From that point, however, the Yellow Jackets closed the game on a 10-1 run.

The Setters are now off until Saturday, December 21 when they host Felician in a non-conference match at 1:00 pm.