CALDWELL, NJ—On Sunday night, St. Joseph’s took on Ramapo in the nightcap of the final day of the 2015 Hoop Group Tip-Off Classic at Caldwell University. The Falcons got off to a slow start, but still managed to take a 19-17 lead into the intermission. Then, in the second half, Syracuse bound Tyus Battle and Mississippi bound Bree Tyree took over with Battle scoring 16 of his 19 points in the second half and Tyree scoring 10 of his 12 points over the final two periods to give St. Joseph’s a 45-33 lead before Ramapo rallied with a 15-5 tear to pull within 50-48 with 40.9 seconds left. Battle, who scored 12 of his points from the line, and had a huge block in the fourth quarter, netted several free throws down the stretch to seal the 55-49 victory. Battle also scored his 1,000th career point with 2:11 left in the third quarter. Below are game notes from the action:
First Quarter
6:00—Two minutes into the game, and we are still scoreless.
5:00—STJ—After Ramapo gets on the board first with a basket, St. Joe’s ties the game at 2-2 on a putback by Branislav Vujadinovic.
Under a minute to go in the nightcap game of the Hoop Group Tip-Off Classic and Joes and Ramapo are tied at 8-8 after this trey by Letrell West.
0:00–First quarter just ended with Ramapo getting a score just before the buzzer for a 10-8 lead.
Second Quarter
5:32—STJ—opens the period on a 6-0 run capped when Bree Tyree swiped steal and soared to the rim for a layin to give St. Joe’s a 14-10 lead.
1:45—STJ–Joes now leads 19-15 on a three from the right wing by Branislav Vujadinovic.
16.9–Timeout with Joes leading 19-17 after an earlier score by Ramapo.
0:00—STJ misses shot as time runs out in the first half. Falcons still lead at the break, 19-17. St. Joseph’s outscores Ramapo by an 11-7 margin in the 2nd.
Third Quarter
6:30—STJ—opens third on a 7-0 run including a pair of free throws by Tyus Battle for a 26-17 lead.
2:28—RAM—rallies with an 8-2 run to pull within three at 28-25.
2:11—STJ—Battle scores his 1,000th point to put the Falcons back up by five, 30-25.
0:00—STJ—extends the lead to eight as Tyree dribbles in from the scorer’s table, and past Ramapo defenders for a layup as he is fouled to give the Falcons a 39-31 lead heading into the fourth. Mikey Granda sank an earlier three from the left wing to also highlight the 11-6 spurt to finish the period.
Fourth Quarter
6:13—STJ—timeout after an earlier Ramapo score closes the gap to 39-33.
4:30—STJ—goes on a 6-0 run capped by a jumper from Tyree for a 45-33 lead.
3:08—RAM—scores 6 unanswered points to close the gap to 45-39.
1:17—STJ—Battle comes up with a huge block on a Ramapo’s Matt Latka to help preserve a 49-46 Falcons lead. Ramapo on a 13-4 tear since Tyree’s jumper.
40.9—RAM—Pulls within two at 50-48 as Joe O’Hagan drives in from the left wing, and gets a kind bounce on a floater.
0:00—STJ—comes away with the 55-49 victory as Tyree took an inbounds pass from the baseline, and dribbled up the sideline opposite of the scorers table to get a clutch layup as he was fouled, and Battle made a couple foul shots to wrap up the win.
Scoring
STJ—Battle–19 points. Tyree–12 points. Alanzo Frink–10 points. Vujadinovic—8 points. West—3 points. Granda—3 points.
RAM—O’Hagan—14 points. Matt Latka—10 points. Jason Oppler—10 points. Ryan Curtiss—6 points. Frankie Aiello—4 points. Keith Woetzel—3 points. Andrew Curcura—2 points.
Ramapo had 7 different players score in the game while St. Joe’s had 6. Each team had three different players score in double figures. Both teams had 4 three pointers, but the key difference was at the foul line where St. Joseph’s outscored Ramapo by a margin of 17-9. Battle scored 12 of his 19 from the charity stripe.