Oshodi, Jones Pace Cougars Past Curry, 73-70

ROCHESTER, N.Y. (11/29/09) - Senior forward Akinwande Oshodi (Florence, N.J.) scored 21 points and junior Jonathan Jones (Linden, N.J.) added a double-double to lead the Kean University men's basketball team to a 73-70 victory over Curry College in the consolation game at the Holiday Inn Airport Invitational at the University of Rochester on Sunday afternoon.

Oshodi (pictured right) scored 17 points in the opening half, while Jones nearly matched that with 15 points in the second half en-route to 16 points and 12 rebounds for the Cougars (2-2).

In a first half that featured seven ties and three lead changes, the Cougars scored the final seven points of the half to take a 40-37 lead over Curry, despite 19 points from junior guard Mark Mastrullo (Billerica, Mass.), who drained five three-pointers in the first half for the Colonels (0-5).  Oshodi offset that with his 17 points on the strength of 6-of-8 shooting from the floor and 4-of-4 from the foul line, as his layup at the buzzer gave the Cougars the three-point lead at the break.

The Cougars extended the run to 15 unanswered points after scoring the first eight points of the second half to push ahead by double-digits at 48-37 on a jumper by Jones just 3:24 into the half.  The two teams traded baskets on their next two possessions before Curry mounted a 9-0 run to pull within two points at 53-51 with 13:17 remaining in the game.

Kean answered with five straight points, before the Colonels pulled even closer with an 8-2 run to cut the Cougar lead to 60-59 with just over nine minutes to go.  The Cougars pushed the advantage back out to nine points, as Jones capped an 11-3 run with a dunk with 3:43 remaining.

Curry scored the next eight points to pull back within one point with just 40 seconds remaining, before Jones pushed the lead back out to three points with a layup with 10 seconds remaining and a Curry three-pointer in the final seconds missed the mark as the Cougars picked up the win. 

Jones earned all-tournament team honors after also adding four steals and two assists in the win.  Senior Vinnie Darpino (Colonia, N.J.) (pictured left) added eight points and a team-high four assists for the Cougars.

Mastrullo finished with a Palestra record nine-three pointers, as he scored a game-high 31 points to also earn all-tournament team honors.

The Cougars open New Jersey Athletic Conference play on Wednesday, December 2, when they host Rutgers-Camden in a doubleheader.  The men's game is slated for 8 p.m.