NEWBURGH, N.Y. — The Pratt Institute men's basketball team rolled to an 81-63 non-conference road win at Mount Saint Mary College on Saturday afternoon, using a deep bench and a fast second half to pull away.
Pratt (2-1) was paced by senior forward Cameron Hatcher (Cincinnati, Ohio), who posted 25 points and 10 rebounds with four 3-pointers, three steals and a block. First-year forward Kurt Thomas (Dallas, Texas) came off the bench to score 21 points on 9-of-14 shooting with three steals and a block, and first-year guard Mason Fritz (Orlando, Fla.) added 13 on a perfect 4-for-4 shooting night, including 3-for-3 from 3-point range.
The Cannoneers led 39-29 at the break and stretched it immediately. Hatcher drilled a 3-pointer 19 seconds into the second half, and Kerem Ozdemir (Union, N.J.) converted a three-point play at 17:45 for a 45-33 cushion. Thomas scored three straight layups during a 10-4 push to make it 57-42 with 12:25 left. Mekhi Davis (Brooklyn, N.Y.) punctuated the surge with a steal and a breakaway dunk at 6:36, and Fritz's corner three at 4:15 and Davis' trey at 3:29 kept the margin comfortable down the stretch.
Pratt's ball movement shined with a season-best 20 assists on 29 field goals, led by first-year guard Elijah Fermaint (Orlando, Fla.) with nine. The gold-and-black also stacked 36 bench points, hit nine 3-pointers and scored 40 in the paint while shooting nearly 50 percent as a team (29-of-59). The Cannoneers finished with 10 steals and turned 18 Mount Saint Mary turnovers into 19 points.
Mount Saint Mary (1-1) was led by Justin Rivera with 13 points and five rebounds. J.P. Egan added 10 points, and Matt Monaco scored eight with five boards.
Pratt seeks their third straight win visiting the United States Merchant Marine Academy on Wednesday, Nov. 19, at 7 p.m.
