LATROBE, Pa. (Nov. 14) – The Saint Vincent men's basketball team earned its first win of the 2026-27 season, cruising to an 88-54 victory over visiting Carlow University on Saturday afternoon at the Robert S. Carey Center.
Collin Jones led the way offensively for the Bearcats, scoring a team-high 15 points on 5-for-7 shooting from the field, including a pair of three-pointers, while also pulling down five rebounds and dishing out three assists.
Jaden Payne followed with 13 points and a team-high eight rebounds, while Isaac Cherry added eight points and seven boards off the bench. Maxwell Gordon and Tyree Turner chipped in seven points apiece, while Niko Gidas added six points in the win.
The Bearcats controlled the game from the opening minutes, using a strong offensive start to jump out to an early lead. After Carlow scored the game's first three points, Saint Vincent responded with a 15-2 run, capped off by a fastbreak layup from Jones, to take a 15-5 advantage with just over 13 minutes remaining in the opening half.
Saint Vincent continued to build its lead, extending its advantage to 22-8 following a fastbreak dunk from Jones with 10:41 remaining in the half. Carlow battled back to cut the deficit to seven, 28-21, with five minutes remaining, but the Bearcats closed out the half strong, taking a 39-28 lead into the locker room.
The Bearcats continued their strong play in the second half, outscoring Carlow 49-26 over the final 20 minutes.
Saint Vincent extended its lead to 24 points, 59-35, on a layup from Adam Straub with just over 11 minutes remaining. The Bearcats continued to pull away, using a three-pointer from Brady O'Rourke and back-to-back baskets from Zemari Days to build a commanding 71-39 advantage midway through the second half.
Saint Vincent led by as many as 36 points down the stretch before securing the 34-point victory.
As a team, Saint Vincent shot an impressive 55.7 percent (34-for-61) from the field, including 41.2 percent (7-for-17) from beyond the arc. The Bearcats held Carlow to just 30.2 percent (19-for-63) shooting and 23.5 percent (4-for-17) from three-point range.
The Bearcats dominated the glass, outrebounding Carlow 51-28, while also holding a 54-30 advantage in points in the paint. Saint Vincent's bench played a major role in the victory, outscoring Carlow's reserves 58-16.
Carlow (0-4) was led by Tomasi Pavihi, who scored 12 points and pulled down six rebounds. Kaleb Pryor added 10 points for the Celtics in the loss.
With the win, Saint Vincent improves to 1-1 on the season. The Bearcats will return to action on Tuesday, November 17, when they host Penn State Greater Allegheny at the Robert S. Carey Center. Tip-off is scheduled for 7 p.m.
