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| Dino Johnson posted a double-double, including a career-high 10 rebounds on Saturday. |
After a sluggish start to the contest, the Dolphins found themselves behind by 26-13 with just over eight minutes gone by in the contest. Starting with a jumper from Joe Cooke (Mount Vernon, N.Y.) with 11:42 left in the period, the Dolphins scored 14 straight points to take a one point lead at 27-26 on a lay-in from Keiran Halton (Manasquan, N.J.) with 7:24 left before the break.
The two teams would battle between ties and lead changes for the final six minutes, before Mount Saint Mary used an 8-3 spurt at the end of the half to take a 42-37 lead in to the locker room. The Blue Knights shot just under 60-percent (17-30) from the floor in the period and got 13 points from Carlos Valdez and Chris Harrison.
The Blue Knights kept the momentum in the early part of the second half and extended their lead to 12 points twice in the first four minutes of the half. After a Valdez jumper pushed the Mount Saint Mary lead to 53-41 with 16:31 left in regulation the Dolphins put together a 10-1 run capped by a Matias Roibal (Boonton, N.J.) bucket to cut their deficit to just five with just over 13:00 left in the contest.
After five straight points from the Blue Knights pushed their lead back to double-figures, the Dolphins went on a 16-4 run to take the lead on a Nick DiMaggio (Croton, N.Y.) triple with 8:13 left in the contest. The lead would extend to six on a four point play from Ecock, before Johnson drained seven points in the final 3:30 to secure the win.
Johnson finished 7-14 from the floor overall and 4-10 from distance. He handed out three assists and picked up a pair of steals in addition to his career mark of 10 boards, three of which came on the offensive glass. Johnson has now scored at least 11 points in his last seven contests and reached 20 points for the second time this season.
Ecock came off the bench and shot 6-10 from the field, including a pair of triples. He also secured four rebounds and handed out three assists in matching his career-high of 27 minutes of action.
Halton finished the afternoon with 13 points on 6-10 shooting and DiMaggio netted 10 points in 23 minutes after early foul trouble. DiMaggio has scored at least 10 points in his last four appearances and has missed scoring in double-figures just twice this season. He also handed out a pair of helpers in the contest.
Mount Saint Mary (3-16, 3-9 Skyline) was led by Valdez who finished with a game-high 26 points on 12-17 shooting and 13 rebounds. Harrison poured in 21 points for the Blue Knights and also reached double-figures on the boards with 12. Alex Kuchar posted 11 points in the loss and Matt Weinberger scored eight points and handed out a game-high eight assists.
The win marks Mount Saint Vincent’s fourth straight triumph and gives the Dolphins six wins in their last eight games. The Mount’s record stands at 11-7 overall with the win and 9-3 in the Skyline Conference. Next on the Dolphins’ schedule is a trip to St. Joseph’s-LI on February 4. Tip-off in Patchogue is set for 8:00 p.m.
