La Plume, Pa. - Neumann University shot a blazing, 68.4 percent from the field in the second half and pulled away with a 114-83 victory in a high-scoring Colonial States Athletic Conference men's basketball game at Keystone College on Saturday afternoon. The defending conference champion Knights improve to 17-6 on the year and 13-3 in league play while the Giants fall to 4-19 on the year and 4-12 in the CSAC.
Keystone opened up a 15-8 lead over the first three minutes of Saturday's contest before Neumann countered with the game's next eight points to claim a one-point edge at the 13:55 mark. The two teams traded the lead six times over the next seven minutes before the Knights used a 9-0 burst to claim a 43-36 edge with 3:21 remaining in the opening frame. The visitors would lead by as many as 11 points before holding a 53-44 advantage after a fast-paced, high-scoring half of play.
DeShawn Lowman led all scorers in the first half with 14 points for Neumann while Darian Barnes contributed 10 points and seven rebounds. James Butler collected eight rebounds for the Knights, who shot 44.7 percent from the field in the opening stanza while going 2-10 from three-point range and 9-13 from the free throw line.
Khyle Diaz (East Miramar, FL/Pembroke Pines Charter) paced Keystone with 12 points and five caroms in the first half while
Tyree Jones (Harlem, NY/Holcombe L. Rucker) came off the bench to netted eight points and five assists.
James Cooper (Freehold, NJ/Pius X) tallied six points in the opening frame for the Giants, who connected on 42.5 percent of their field goal attempts including a 34.8 percent clip from long distance.
ShaShawn Drayton (Monticello, NY/Monticello) followed up a Cooper trey with a layup two minutes into the second half to bring Keystone to with 57-50 early in the second half, but Neumann quickly pushed their lead back to double-figures and used 15-3 run to open up an 83-61 lead with 11:42 remaining in regulation. The Giants drew to within 18 points three times in the next four minutes, but were unable to come any closers as the Knights pulled away with the win.
Lowman finished with a game-high 23 points while Barnes (20 points, 15 rebounds) and Butler (14 points, 14 rebounds) added double-doubles for Neumann. Tony Parker added 18 points off the bench, Tyaire Hudson had 15 points, and Denzel Yard dished out a game-high eight assists for the Knights, who shot 55.3 percent from the field in the victory while going 28.6 percent from downtown and 72.7 percent from the charity stripe. The visitors also held a 61-41 advantage on the glass and were plus-three (16-19) in turnovers.
Jones led Keystone with 16 points and six assists while Cooper finished with 15 points.
Devin Williams (Monticello, NY/Monticello) tallied 14 points while Diaz was the fourth player in double-figures for the Giants with 12 points to pair with six rebounds. Drayton led the hosts with eight rebounds and added a pair of blocked shots for the hosts, who hit on 36.4 percent of their attempts from the floor while going 33.3 percent from three-point land and 50 percent from the line.
Keystone hits the road for the final time this season on Wednesday when they travel to Hackettstown, New Jersey for a CSAC tilt against Centenary College. Opening tip is scheduled for 7:00 p.m.
