PITTSBURGH, Pa. – La Roche men's basketball avenged yet another early season conference loss, this time against Mt. Aloysius, taking down the Mounties 83-71.
Prior to the game, La Roche had a ceremony for the 2022-23 AMCC Champions as the team got together to receive their championship rings.
It was evenly matched in the contest's first 6:49 as the score stood tied at 9-9. Then, over the next 3:05, the Redhawks used a run of 11-3 to build a 20-12 lead.
The Mounties would fight back, tying the game 25-25 with 6:52 remaining in the first half, and eventually took a 30-27 lead, capping what would be a 9-2 run in their favor.
Mt. Aloysius held the lead until La Roche tied the game at 32-32 with 3:10 remaining.
From there, the teams would trade the lead back-and-forth with multiple ties, until a late jumper with 14 seconds left by Michael Brooks gave the Redhawks a 41-39 lead going into the locker room.
Out of the break, La Roche started fast, using a 7-0 run in the first 3:27 to take a 48-39 lead.
The lead grew to as many as ten in the early stages at 50-40, but it was just a 56-50 lead after the Mounties trimmed the deficit with 12:28 to go.
Over the next 4:53 the Redhawks held Mt. Aloysius scoreless, using an 8-0 in that stretch to open a 64-50 lead.
Late in the half, the Mounties made one last push, using an 8-0 run to cut a 69-56 deficit down to five, but La Roche would use a 6-0 run shortly after to regain a double-digit edge and hit its free-throws down the stretch to seal the win.
For the game, the Redhawks finished the night going 26-for-68 (38.2%) from the floor and 7-for-22 (31.8%) from three. From the foul line, they capitalized on 24 of 28 attempts (85.7%).
On the other side, the Pioneers finished 28-for-69 (40.6%) from the field, 7-for-18 (38.9%) from deep, while going 8-for-9 (88.9%) from the foul line.
La Roche has a strong game from its starting five, with four finishing in double figures.
Brooks led the way with a game high 22 points to go with seven rebounds, four assists and a pair of steals.
Joe Starzynski also hit for 20 points, six rebounds and a pair of blocks, while Dominic Elliott earned a double-double with 14 points and 12 rebounds, followed by 13 points, eight rebounds, a pair of steals and two assists from Isaiah Thomas.
The Redhawks conclude its two-game home stand on Saturday, Jan. 27 against Pitt-Bradford. Opening tip for LRU Hall of Fame Day is slated for 4 p.m.