Phoenixville, PA – A handful of career-highs pushed the Patriots to a 119-87 victory over the Lions of The King's College (NY) on Saturday evening at home.
Steven Eng put on a three-point show as he led the Patriots with a career-high 23 points, draining 6 three-pointers, dishing out 4 dimes and collecting 3 steals.
Owen Bradford tallied 14 points, 7 boards, a career-high 5 dimes, and 4 steals.
Drew Grow earned his first double-double with a career-high 13 points and 11 rebounds.
Matthew Altamirano,
Derian Bradford, and
Aaron Hill combined for 33 points, as they collected 11 points each.
Bennie Howard Jr. produced 10 points, while
Jeremy Eng brought the energy with a career-high points, 5 boards, 4 assists, and 4 steals.
"As good as our offense was, our defense was equally as bad," stated head coach
DJ Damazo. "We need to figure it out on that end of the floor if we want to become the team we want to be. I am proud of several guys that stepped up and played well, but we need to collectively execute on the defensive side of the floor."
It was an even start as both teams held their ground, trading the lead six different times within the first 6 minutes of the game. The Patriots took full control as they tallied their best scoring run of the game with 19 points at 11:47 in the first-half. Valley Forge gathered an impressive 33-point lead, shooting 59.1% (26-44) from the field and 47.1% (8-17). Within the last two minutes, the Lions clipped the Patriots lead to 26 as they entered half-time. Valley Forge collected 72 points in the first stanza.
The Patriots went off in the second-half, sharing the rock and gathering a game-high 38-point lead. Valley Forge broke their previously set record of 118 points with a pair of free-throws from
Andres Rubio to end the contest wih a 119-87 final.
Valley Forge outshot the Lions in the as they went 45-88 from the field (51.1%), 12-36 from three-point land (33.3%), and 17-20 from the stripe (85%). The Patriots secured 68 bench points.
The Patriots will back in action on the road as they travel to Radnor, PA on Monday, January 17
th to face the Cavaliers of Cabrini College at 7 p.m.
