MIAMI GARDENS, Fla. (November 4, 2021) – The St. Thomas University (STU) Men's Basketball team (1-0) started the Patrick Crarey era in the win column defeating Florida National University (1-1) 84-67 in front of the home crowd at the Fernandez Family Center. The Bobcats now improve to 6-2 all-time against the Conquistadors.
 
Bobcat Starters
Lee Richmond
Jonas Parker
Justyn Rogers
Will Brown III
Dwayne Russell
 
Game one was all Bobcats; after failing to make the opening basket, the team only trailed twice in the contest and never by more than three. Dwayne Russell continued where he left off last season scoring the first basket of the 2021-22 season. Jonas Parker then followed up with his first three-pointer as Bobcat, this would be three of his 27-points for the night.
 
James Harris III came in halfway through the first half and made three clutch free throws to tie it up at 19 all. D'Andre Johnson hit two free throws that would give STU a 21-19 lead as the Bobcats stayed a top to head into the half.
 
Florida National quickly came in and scored a layup to start the second half and tie the game at 37. Dwayne Russell worked his way down low in the post to regain the lead 39-37. Parker threw down his first dunk off a transition from a defensive rebound. St. Thomas found a groove in the second half and after the 37 all tie, the Bobcats did not look back, carrying the lead through the rest of the game.
 
The second half was quite the turnaround ultimately the difference maker for STU, as the team went from shooting 36.4% from the field to 53.1% and stepped up from behind the arc shooting 18.2% in the first half to 28.6% in the second half. The Bobcat bench outscored the Conquistador bench 20-0 in the contest. St. Thomas also scored 22 second chance points and capitalized on Conquistador turnovers scoring 13-points. Russell and Jahsim Floyd helped run the offense in the paint outscoring FNU 40-24.
 
Jonas Parker led the way with 27-points, five-rebounds, 11-24 from the field, and two steals. Will Brown III collected 17-points, three-rebounds, and went perfect six-for-six on field goal attempts and four-for-four from the charity stripe. Dwayne Russell rounded out the top performances with 14-points, eight-rebounds, and a steal.
 
Five players made their Bobcat debut on the floor, Parker and Brown led the way for the newcomers. Three Bobcats were in double figures for points. Justyn Rogers led on rebounds, being the lone double-digit figure with 11. Rogers and Floyd combined for a total of six blocks while D'Andre Johnson added one of his own.
 
St. Thomas hits the road this Saturday, November 6, to take on Edward Waters College in Jacksonville, Fla. tip-off is set at 4 p.m. This game will be a homecoming for senior, Dwayne Russell, who is a native of Jacksonville.