MORRISTOWN, N.J. - In a back-and-forth North Eastern Athletic Conference men's basketball tilt, here Wednesday night, Gallaudet University found itself only three points away from tying College of Saint Elizabeth in the closing minutes. The host Eagles used a 12-0 run, in a span of one minute and 30 seconds, as the Bison missed three 3-point shots and turned the ball over twice. The game drifted out of sight as St. Elizabeth won 96-83.

Gallaudet (1-11, 1-3 NEAC) led for the majority of the first half as the visitors saw its lead balloon to six, on several occasions, and took a 42-41 lead into halftime. The second half was close before the Eagles broke open the game in the final minutes with four 3-pointers.

Junior guard Noah Valencia (Riverside, Calif.) scored a game-high 29 points as he made 8 of 11 shots from the field, including six 3-pointers to go with four assists. Four different Bison reached double figures including Valencia, freshman guard Corey Smith (Miami, Fla.) tallied 16 points and junior center Steve Valencia-Biskupiak (Riverside, Calif.) and junior guard Trace Martin (Shingle Springs, Calif.) netted 13 each.

St. Elizabeth (7-4, 2-1 NEAC) had six different players record double figures led by Ted Thelemaque's 26-point game as he made eight 3-pointers.

BISON TRACKS

• Sophomore guard Preston Kelly (Fishers, Ind.) added eight points, seven assists and five rebounds
• Valencia-Biskupiak grabbed five rebounds and passed out five assists
• Smith contributed four assists and four boards
• St. Elizabeth scored 29 points off 21 turnovers and received 29 points from its bench
• Valencia jumped several GU all-time scorers with his 29-point game as he increased his career point total to 1,086. He passed Daryl Wetzel (1,058), Danny Kelly (1,070) and David Hamilton (1,074)

UP NEXT
Gallaudet will return home for a four-game homestand against NEAC teams. The Bison will next face SUNY Poly (3-9, 0-3 NEAC) on Saturday, Jan. 12, at 3 p.m. Stay tuned to www.gallaudetathletics.com for any schedule changes, due to weather, that may impact this weekend's games.