BOX SCORE

ASTON, Pa.-The Immaculata men's basketball team (5-8, 4-2 CSAC) travelled to Neumann on Monday night looking to win their second straight conference game, but the Knights (5-9, 4-3 CSAC) built a 14-point halftime lead and never looked back on their way to the 70-53 CSAC win.  Immaculata was unable to cut into the lead significantly in the second half as Neumann successfully defended their home floor.
 
Seniors Nelson Torres (13 points, 5 rebounds) and Todd Stokley (11 points, 4 rebounds) paced the Mighty Macs, while junior Jerod Cain (six points, six rebounds, and three blocks) contributed a solid overall performance.
 
The teams were on the see-saw early in the game as the two conference opponents exchanged the lead six times in the opening five minutes of the game.  Cain, junior Adam Jones (five points, five rebounds), and Stokley all gave Immaculata the lead early on, but Neumann responded every time.
 
With the Mighty Macs leading 8-7, the Knights ripped off a 14-0 run over the next six minutes to build up a double digit lead.  Stout defense by the Knights and strong scoring from Rich Whitten (16 points) and Mark Blount (16 points, 12 rebounds) propelled the big Neumann surge.
 
Immaculata showed fight early, however, as they scored the next five points to cut the lead back to eight with 7 ½ minutes to go before the break.  Cain knocked down a jumper and freshman Tyreek Peeples drilled a triple to slice the lead back to single digits, but that was the closest the Mighty Macs would get the rest of the contest.
 
An 11-2 run by the Knights again extended their lead to 32-15 just before the half before senior Kendall Peters (five points) knocked down the team's second three-pointer to make it 32-18 at the break.
 
Neumann continued to lead throughout the second half as Immaculata tried to mount a rally.  Torres hit a lay-up with 12:49 to go in the game to make it 43-33, but Neumann again extended their advantage with an 18-7 spurt over the next five minutes to put the game out of reach.
 
The 70-53 victory by Neumann was their sixth straight over the Mighty Macs in the series between the schools.
 
Immaculata was efficient offensively in the second half shooting 15-30 (50%), but the Knights shot 11-19 (57.9%) to keep the Mighty Macs from creeping any closer.
 
The Mighty Macs will now host the next two games with Keystone and Centenary visiting on Wednesday and Saturday, respectively.