PLEASANTVILLE, NY- Jonathan Merceus (Union, NJ/Union) (Union, NJ/Union) posted a double-double, including recording his 100th career steal, as the Setters rallied from first half deficit to down the Yellow Jackets of American International 69-65 in Northeast-10 Conference action.
The Setters win their second in a row to improve to 5-16 overall and 3-12 in the NE-10, while the Yellow Jackets fall to 9-14 and 6-10 in conference play.
Both teams held slim advantage over the first 14 minutes of the game but Kai Smith (Upper Marlboro, MD/St. Mary's Ryken) (Upper Marlboro, MD/St. Mary's Ryken) pulled the Setters back to within two points with a triple at the 5:52 mark. The Yellow Jackets pulled ahead by seven points and headed into the half in the lead at 38-31.
Pace came out firing to start the second half as they scored eight points in the first two and half minutes to slice it down to a point at 41-40. Denzel Primus-Devonish (Riverdale, MD/St. John's College) (Riverdale, MD/St. John's College) connected on a pair of baskets to put the Setters in the lead for good with 14:37 remaining in the game. When the dust cleared, Pace opened the half on a 15-4 run to take a 46-42 lead with 13:03 left in the contest. Smith had a key three-point play early in the run, while Primus-Devonish nailed a triple and the pair of buckets. Merceus capped the run with a lay-up to put Pace up by four.
The Setters added to their lead as they pulled ahead by as many as eight points behind a pair of Primus-Devonish free throws at the 8:18 mark to put Pace up 54-46. The Yellow Jackets rallied with an 8-2 burst to cut the score down to two points at 56-54 with 5:28 left in the game. The score remained close but the Setters thwarted American International down the stretch and in the final minute of play Smith (4-for-4) and Primus-Devonish (2-for-2) hit their free throws to secure the victory.
For the Setters, Merceus recorded his eighth double-double on the season with 20 points and tied a career-high with 15 rebounds, while becoming the 17th member of the 100-steal club with three swipes on the day. Primus-Devonish added 13 points, six assists and four rebounds, while Smith finished with 12 points and three rebounds in the game. Jamaal James (Brooklyn, NY/Brooklyn College Academy) reached double figures in rebounds with 10 and added eight points.
The Setters are back on action on Wednesday, February 12 as they will host The College of Saint Rose Golden Knights in an NE-10 clash at 7:30 pm at the Goldstein Fitness Center.
