Fast Start by Florida National University Too Much to Overcome for Mont Alto

By: Frank Maira, Assistant Director of Athletics/Sports Information Director

HIALEAH, Fla. – Florida National University began the game on a 24-7 run, which turned out to be too much to overcome in a 74-63 loss on Tuesday evening. The non-conference loss dropped PSUMA's overall record to 7-4, while the Conquistadors improved to 10-8.

Inside the Box Score

• John Teague (Hagerstown, Md. / North Hagerstown) finished as Mont Alto's leading scorer with 16 points for the night. The freshman forward shot 72.7 percent from the floor and also grabbed six rebounds.
• Senior Jalen Smith (Ranson, W.Va. / Jefferson) notched a season-high five blocks as he also poured in 12 points for the Nittany Lions.
• Mont Alto was held to 2-of-19 shooting from downtown, but on the defensive end of the floor the team forced 13 turnovers.
• The bulk of the Conquistadors scoring came from their starters as three of them finished in double figures. Reigning USCAA Division I Player of the Week Antonio Sims lead all scorers with 17 points.

How it Happened

• Jeffery Hernandez and Kenneth Santos were able to seize the early game momentum for Florida National as they drained multiple 3-pointers in the early 24-7 run.
• Coming out of the media timeout at the 15:35 mark, Mont Alto got themselves back in the game by feeding the ball into the low post to John Teague (Hagerstown, Md. / North Hagerstown). PSUMA also played tighter defense.
• Terrell Campbell (Germantown, Md. / St. John's College Prep) converted on an acrobatic transition layup that cut the deficit to 26-19. Mont Alto went into the halftime break trailing 26-19.
• The Nittany Lions settled into the pace of the second half and cut the lead into single digits and forced an early Conquistador timeout after a Kevin Holston (Fort Washington, Md. / Friendly) steal in which he finished off with a layup that made it 50-41.
• Mont Alto remained hot out of the timeout and cut further into the deficit as a Shun Hickman (Shippensburg, Pa. / Shippensburg) hook shot made it 56-50 with 8:45 remaining.
• Down the stretch, Mont Alto closed the gap to five-points (67-61) after a Smith runner in the paint, but FNU converted on their shots and pulled away for the 74-63 final.

Penn State Mont Alto returns to action on Wednesday, Dec. 19 against Florida Memorial University at 7 p.m.

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