Philadelphia, Pa. - The St. Thomas Aquinas College Men's Basketball team made the trip down the New Jersey Turnpike for a Wednesday evening non-conference tilt in the City of Brotherly Love with Jefferson University. Despite receiving significant offensive contributions from both Starrell Hearns and Ky Panda-Massey in the contest, the Spartans dropped an 86-70 decision to the Rams.

STAC falls to 1-2 on the season, while Jefferson remains perfect, now at 3-0.

The aforementioned Hearns posted a game-high 22 points, while Panda-Massey put up 14 points. Meanwhile, Alex Bates IV led the way for the Rams with 20 points.

St. Thomas Aquinas shot 42.1 percent (24-57) from the field and 75.0 percent (18-24) from the free-throw line, while Jefferson shot 54.5 percent (30-55) from the floor.

STAC NOTES AND HIGHLIGHTS:

• Ten Spartans logged double-digit minutes in the contest.
• Joshua Michigan led the maroon and gold with two assists on the evening.
• Starrell Hearns hit 7 of his 15 field goal attempts and and 5-of-6 free throws. Ky Panda-Massey went 5-for-9 from the floor and 4-of-4 from the foul line.
• Jefferson out-rebounded STAC by a slim 34-30 margin, with Hearns also grabbing a team-high eight boards for the Spartans.
• St. Thomas Aquinas swiped five steals, with the Rams turning the ball over on 15 separate occasions.
• The game featured no ties and no lead changes.
• St. Thomas Aquinas trailed Jefferson 38-24 at the half and shot 37.5 percent (9-of-24) from the field and 75.0 percent (6-of-8) from the free-throw line.
• Igor Gonzalez led all Spartans' scorers with eight first half points, while shooting 100.0 percent (3-of-3) from the floor and 100.0 percent (2-for-2) from the foul line.

JEFFERSON NOTES AND HIGHLIGHTS:

• Eight Rams logged double-digit minutes in the contest. 
• Alex Bates IV led Jefferson with 20 points, while teammates Jeremiah Dorsey (14 points), Shane Cercone (14 points) and Matt McCool (13 points) also scored in double figures.
• Dorsey and Brendan Mykalcio led Jefferson with six assists apiece on the night.
• Bates went 5-for-9 from the floor, 3-of-6 from three-point and 7-for-8 from the foul line. McCool connected on 6-of-7 field goal attempts.
• Mykalcio also grabbed a game-high nine boards for the Rams.
• Jefferson picked up nine steals, with the Spartans turning the ball over on 17 separate occasions.
• The Rams earned advantages in five key team statistical categories over St. Thomas Aquinas: Points Off Turnovers (19-11), Second Chance Points (14-13), Points in the Paint (40-34), Fastbreak Points (7-4) and Bench Points (22-19). 
• Jefferson had its largest lead of the game (17 points) midway through the second half, 58-41, on a Moustapha Sanoh dunk.
• Jeremiah Dorsey and Alex Bates IV led all scorers at the half with nine points apiece for the Rams, with Dorsey shooting 60.0 percent (3-of-5) from the field and 66.7 percent (2-of-3) from long distance, and Bates IV connecting on 42.9 percent (3-of-7) of his shots from the floor.
• Jefferson's best shooting half came in the second stanza, with the Rams shooting 57.7 percent (15-26) from the field and 73.7 percent (14-19) from the foul line.

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