Lakewood, N.J. - The St. Thomas Aquinas College Men's Basketball team captured its fifth straight victory on Wednesday evening by downing Georgian Court University, 87-70, in non-conference action at the GCU Wellness Center.

STAC improves to 7-1 on the season, while GCU falls to 1-5.

James Patterson led the way for the Spartans, recording 24 points, while teammates Jamal Barnes (15pts) and Luis Risquez (10pts) also posted double-digit point totals.

STAC shot 35.2 percent (25-71) from the field and 83.3 percent (30-36) from the charity stripe, while Georgian Court shot 48.1 percent (26-54) from the floor.

STAC NOTES AND HIGHLIGHTS:

• Ten Spartans logged double-digit minutes in the contest. 
• Jamal Barnes led the maroon and gold with three assists on the evening.
• James Patterson made 6 of his 19 field goal attempts and 11-of-12 free throws, while Jamal Barnes went 4-for-9 from the floor and 5-for-6 from the foul line.
• STAC out-rebounded GCU by a 51-33 margin, with Lawrence Foreman grabbing a game-high nine boards for the Spartans.
• St. Thomas Aquinas picked up 15 steals, with the Lions turning the ball over on 25 separate occasions.
• The Spartans earned advantages in two team statistical categories over Georgian Court: Points off Turnovers (25-15), Second Chance Points (16-10) and Bench Points (31-30).
• The game featured one tie and one lead change.
• The sides combined for 42 fouls, with St. Thomas Aquinas shooting 36 free throws and Georgian Court shooting 22.

HOW IT HAPPENED:

• STAC opened the jersey shore matchup with a 5-2 run, as Lawrence Foreman's layup and James Patterson's trey set the tone early.
• Trailing by seven (11-4), Georgian Court was able to climb back with a back-to-back threes to cut its deficit to just one at 11-10.
• The Spartans were able to go streaking once again, this time 10-2 with James Patterson, Rich Smith and Jamal Barnes providing the offense for the maroon and gold. STAC extended its lead to 21-12 with 10 minutes to play in the opening stanza.
• Georgian Court was able to narrow the margins on the scoreboard in the later half of the frame, but it would just fuel the Spartans to push the pace of play and continue to answer with their own scoring. Kyle Pulliam and Michael Parrotta joined the point parade in the final minutes before halftime to make it a 19-point game (47-28) at the break.
• James Patterson led all scorers in the first half with 18 points for the Spartans, while Clint Wright, Jr. recorded 11 points for the Lions.
• When the teams returned to the hardwood for the second half, Rich Smith, Lawrence Foreman and Jamal Barnes helped the Spartans to their largest lead of the evening (22 points), as the maroon and gold made it a 56-34 game with 16:42 left to play in regulation.
• Although Georgian Court would cut into the STAC lead during the second stanza, they were never able to get the deficit below 10, as the Spartans answered almost every Lions bucket with one of their own. 
• All 14 Spartans who suited up for the contest contributed on both sides of the ball, making sure Tuesday's contest was never in doubt.

UP NEXT:

STAC opens its East Coast Conference schedule on Saturday, December 2, hosting Mercy University at Aquinas Hall Gym, with the opening tip set for 3:00 p.m.