Bangor, ME – The Husson University Eagles outlasted the Monks of St. Joseph's College 81-78 in a noisy Newman Gymnasium Wednesday night. With the addition of ads for corporate sponsors festooning the walls, the gymnasium may have a new look, but it had a vintage feel on Wednesday as the Monks came to town. The game was also an "Eagle Alert Night," but the fans needed no extra incentive to watch these two bitter rivals clash once again on the hardwood.

Josh Jones led all scorers with 25 points and 12 rebounds for the Eagles, thanks in large part to a 4-6 night from behind the arc. Mark Zaharchuck missed his double double by just three rebounds, but added 20 points of his own on the night, largely because of an 8-8 performance from the charity stripe. Zach O'Brien led the Monks with 20 points, and was one of four St. Joe's players to finish in double figures, but it was not enough to top the high-flying Eagles.

Much like a heavyweight title fight, both teams spent the first 5 minutes feeling each other out scoring only 13 points in that opening stretch. The teams began trading blows – some less figurative than others – around the 12 minute mark as the physicality began to intensify.  This play wasn't exemplified any better than when Josh Jones jumped into his own bench after a loose rebound, and saved it by hurling the ball at a St. Joe's player, no doubt reliving his days in elementary P.E. dodgeball.

St. Joe's came back from down 5 to tie the game with just under 6 minutes remaining in the half.  The score stayed tied as the Eagles and Monks traded 3s, including a bank shot from the top of the key by Jay Uhrin.  A double foul by Clark Noonan of St. Joe's and Tim Hughes of Husson sent both teams into the bonus, with the Eagles answering the call, going 6/6 from the line. Josh Jones hit a 3 in traffic as the final minute began to tick off the clock putting the Eagles up by two going into the half.

Husson went 12-36 from the field and 4-8 from three point land in the first half, Josh Jones lead the Eagles with 11 points and 6 rebounds. Chris Petzy led the halftime scoring for the Monks with 10 of his own.

The second half started with a 3 by the Monks, but the Eagles combated with stout defense, forcing turnovers and diving around the court for loose balls. Their hustle was matched by the Monks and scoring was at a premium, seeing only 40 total points amidst turnovers and 12 fouls in the first 7 minutes. The lack of scoring did nothing to quiet the crowd, in fact the great hustle and physical play sparked the full house, providing a raucous home court advantage for the Eagles. The score was close throughout the second half, featuring numerous lead changes and thrilling baseline-to-baseline action, but what really got the crowd going were clutch three pointers from Wes Murphy and Eric Modica near the midway point in the second half. When the Monks came out to guard the perimeter, Husson dumped it inside to Zaharchuk and Jones.

The largest lead of the second half for either team came at 6:18 when the Eagles lead by 7. But the monks quickly responded with a 3 pointer, and both shots of a 1-1 to cut the lead to two points with 5 and a half to play. After a few trips down the floor for both sides, St. Joe's fought back to tie it 73-73 with 3:32 to play.

Husson took a two point lead into the final minute as the fans rose to their feet. Mark Zaharchuck got his rebound and put it back to bring the lead to 4 with 51 seconds remaining. The Monks pushed the ball up the court and Husson's tight D forced a tough shot from the corner, which fell short, into the hands of Josh Jones who hit one of two from the line to make it a 5 point game. On the free throw miss, St. Joseph's Anthony Savino pushed it up the court, and nailed a 3 from the wing to quiet the crowd and make it a 2 pt game with 20 seconds remaining. Eric Modica safely received the inbounds pass and split from the line, making it a 3 point gap with 15 seconds left. St. Joe's got a good look from deep by Tyler Kelley, but the shot rattled against the iron, and fell into the hands of Jay Urhin to secure the victory.

Coach Caruso was pleased with his team's performance, and had this to say, "The guys really fought hard out there, and it was great to see them diving after loose balls. It's always nice to beat St. Joe's, but more importantly, this gives us some great momentum going into the Paul Bunyan (tournament)." The Eagles (3-1) take on the University of Maine at Machias Saturday December 4, at 7:30 pm in the Newman Gym.