Tampa, Fla. - The St. Thomas Aquinas College Men's Basketball team closed out their weekend road trip to the Sunshine State on Sunday evening, falling to the University of Tampa 92-77 on day two of the Tampa Holiday Classic at the Bob Martinez Athletics Center.

STAC slips to 6-7 on the season, while Tampa improves to 7-4.

Anthony Daley posted a team-high 17 points for the New York Spartans, while Starrell Hearns (15 points), Derrick James (13 points) and Jordan Green (11 points) also scored in double figures. For the Florida Spartans, Ryan Blount led all scorers with 30 points.

St. Thomas Aquinas shot 42.4 percent (28-66) from the field and 76.5 percent (13-17) from the foul line, while Tampa shot 45.5 percent (30-66) from the floor and 81.8 percent (18-22) from the charity stripe.

STAC NOTES AND HIGHLIGHTS:

• Ten Spartans logged double-digit minutes in the contest.
• Derrick James and Joshua Michigan led the maroon and gold with four assists apiece on the evening.
• Anthony Daley hit 6 of his 14 field goal attempts, with 5-of-11 shots going in from long distance. Starrell Hearns went 6-for-12 from the floor.
• Tampa out-rebounded STAC by a 46-32 margin, with Jordan Green grabbing a game-high nine boards for the Spartans.
• St. Thomas Aquinas swiped seven steals, with the Spartans turning the ball over on 18 separate occasions.
• The Spartans earned advantages in four key team statistical categories over Tampa: Points off Turnovers (25-15), Second Chance Points (16-13), Points in the Paint (36-32) and Bench Points (45-35).
• STAC had its largest lead of the game (four points) with just under nine minutes to play in the opening half, 24-20, on a Cairo Rivera dunk.
• The game featured seven ties and 12 lead changes.
• St. Thomas Aquinas led Tampa 45-44 at the half and shot 48.6 percent (18-37) from the field and 47.1 percent (8-17) from beyond the arc.
• Anthony Daley led all scorers with 17 first half points for the Spartans, while shooting 60.0 percent (6-of-10) from the floor and 62.5 percent (5-of-8) from distance.

TAMPA NOTES AND HIGHLIGHTS:

• Nine Spartans logged double-digit minutes in the contest. 
• Ryan Blount led Tampa with 30 points, while teammates Trey Lane (11 points), Ben Southerland (11 points), Camden McCormick (11 points) and B.J. Schaeffer (10 points) also scored in double figures.
• McCormick also led Tampa with eight assists apiece on the night.
• Blount went 11-for-20 from the floor, with 6-of-12 shots sailing through the nets from beyond the arc. Lane connected on 4-of-14 field goal attempts and 3-of-11 three pointers.
• Trey Lane also grabbed a game-high nine boards for the Spartans.
• Tampa picked up nine steals, with the Spartans turning the ball over on 13 separate occasions.
• The Spartans earned one advantage in the team statistical categories over St. Thomas Aquinas: Fastbreak Points (22-18).
• Tampa had its largest lead of the game (19 points) with just under two minutes to play in the contest, 92-73, on a Justin Taylor layup.
• Ryan Blount led all Spartans' scorers at the half with 13 points, as Blount shot 83.3 percent (5-of-6) from the field and 66.7 percent (2-of-3) from beyond the arc.
• Tampa's best shooting half came in the opening stanza, with the Spartans shooting 54.2 percent (13-24) from the field and 100.0 percent (14-14) from the charity stripe.

UP NEXT:

STAC takes a break for the winter holidays and will return to action for their final game in calendar year 2025 on Wednesday, December 31 at Bentley University. Tip-off between the Spartans and Falcons is set for 3:00 p.m. at the Dana Center in Waltham, Massachusetts.