Aston, Pa. – Host Neumann University built a 56-31 lead after shooting 69 percent from the floor in the first half of Monday night's Colonial States Athletic Conference men's basketball matchup against Keystone College on Monday night and never looked back on their way to a 93-71 victory.  The Knights improve to 13-6 on the season and 9-3 in league play while the Giants fall to 4-15 on the year and 4-8 in the CSAC.
 
Neumann led from the start on Monday evening, building a 22-9 lead over the first nine minutes of play.  Keystone cut their deficit to nine points, 29-20, on a DeAndre Monroe (Raleigh, NC/Knightdale) three-pointer at the 8:30 mark, but the Knights tallied the game's next seven points to build a 17-point advantage.  A field goal by Tyree Jones (Harlem, NY/Holcombe L. Rucker) brought the Giants to with 43-29 with three and a half minutes left on the clock, but the hosts closed the period with a 13-2 run to hold the a 25-point lead at the break.
 
Darian Barnes and Denzel Yard led Neumann with 12 points apiece in the first half with Barnes adding 11 rebounds and four blocked shots.  James Butler tallied 11 points in the opening frame for the Knights, who went 3-6 from three-point range and 13-17 from the free throw line while holding a 20-13 advantage on the glass.
 
Deion Monroe (Kingston, NY/Kingston ) paced Keystone with nine first half points while Jones added eight points and a pair of assists. ShaShawn Drayton (Monticello, NY/Monticello) chipped in with four points while Devin Williams (Monticello, NY/Monticello) led the squad with three rebounds.  The Giants connected on 36.4 percent of their field goal attempts in the stanza while going 4-13 from downtown and 3-3 from the charity stripe.
 
Neumann scored the first two points of the second half before Keystone rattled off the next nine points to pull to with 58-40 with 18 minutes left in regulation, but the Giants were unable to pull any closer as the Knights led by 20 or more points for the final 13 minutes of the contest.
 
Barnes powered the hosts with a triple-double, recording 16 points, 14 rebounds, and 10 blocked shots while Butler and DeShawn Lowman added 15 points apiece.  Yard (14) and Tyaire Hudson (13) also reached double-figures for Neumann while Lowman dished out a game-high five assists on the night.  The Knights finished the contest shooting 61.4 percent from the field, 33.3 percent from long distance, and 66.7 percent from the line.
 
Monroe netted a game and career-high 18 points to go along with three steals for Keystone, who received 11 points from Monroe and 10 from Drayton.  Jones, Williams, and Hardaway caroled three boards apiece while Jones and Tyreek Peeples (Philadelphia, PA/Girard College) dished out a pair of assists each.  The Giants shot 36.8 percent from the floor on the evening including a 33.3 percent showing from three-point territory while going 76.5 percent from the foul line.

Keystone was plus-two (18-20) in the turnover category while Neumann held a 41-31 advantage on the glass for the game.
 
The Giants return to action on Wednesday evening with a key CSAC battle against local rival Summit University starting at 7:00 p.m. in the Gambal Athletic Center in La Plume.  Keystone will be looking to avenge an 87-79 setback suffered to the Defenders on December 2.  Keystone will host a "Be The Match" donor drive at Wednesday night's game with participants joining the Be The Match registry to become potential donors for those battling blood cancers.