BROOKLYN, N.Y. – The Vermont State University Castleton men's basketball team returned from the holiday break with a bang, taking down the host school Medgar Evars in the opening round of the Dr. Carol V. Decosta Tournament on Friday evening by a score of 97-65.
The Spartans (4-6) logged their highest offensive output in two years in the victory, securing a spot in the tournament title game on Saturday at 2 p.m. against SUNY Purchase. Medgar Evars (2-9) suffered its sixth straight loss and will face Mount Aloysius at noon in the consolation game.
VTSU Castleton hit 53.8 percent from the floor and knocked down seven threes in the win, while Medgar Evars was held to 36.5 percent shooting. The Spartans made 20-of-28 free throws in the contest and had a 49-30 edge in rebounding.
Scott Lampron dropped a season-high 30 points on 10-of-15 shooting and made four threes.
Joe Russell added 23 points with six rebounds and three assists.
Will Radcliff was 6-of-7 from the floor for 15 total points and eight rebounds.
Zach Thompson dished out seven assists to go with his eight points and
Leonard Brice had seven points off the bench while hitting 3-for-3 from the field.
For the Cougars, Nicholas Guillen led the way with 20 points on 8-of-24 shooting. Joshua Jean Pierre had nine points and eight rebounds while Andre Evans Jr. and Jackson Bartley had eight points each.
Radcliff netted the game's first basket with an early layup, but a three on the opposite end a few possessions later gave the Cougars a 3-2 lead. It was short-lived, with Radcliff dropping in another layup to put Castleton on top 1:33 into the game and Castleton never trailed again. Medgar Evars hung closed through five minutes, with Castleton building a 14-10 lead to that point. A massive run that saw the Spartans score 10 unanswered points over the next five minutes made it 24-10. A 7-0 spurt minutes later made it 38-19 Spartans. Castleton carried a 53-30 lead into the locker room at halftime thanks to an offensive barrage in the opening 20 minutes.
The second half was much the same with VTSU Castleton starting on a 5-0 run. There were no lengthy runs in the second half, but the Spartans did a quality job limiting the Cougars on offense and scored in quick bunches to continue extending the lead. In total, VTSU Castleton outscored Medgar Evars 44-35 in the final 20 minutes to secure the victory.
