WASHINGTON, Pa. --
Brian Lindquist (Narvon, Pa./Pequea Valley) poured in a career-high 37 points to lead Washington & Jefferson past Chatham, 75-58.
Lindquist was nearly unstoppable on the day, netting 16 of the 21 shots (76.2 percent) he took from the floor and 5-of-6 from the free-throw line. He scored 16-straight W&J points to open the second half, going 8-for-8 from the field over the first 4:30 of the period, turning a two-point halftime deficit (33-31) to a 12-point lead (47-35) by himself. His 37 points are tied for the most in the Presidents' Athletic Conference this season and the most for a W&J player since Nate Bellhy scored 37 in a 92-82 win at Thomas More on Dec. 8, 2012. The junior also added 11 rebounds against the Cougars, marking his first double-double of the season and eighth in nearly three seasons.
Following Lindquist's 16 straight to open the second half,
Mike Zappala (Pittsburgh, Pa./Fox Chapel) added a layup and
Sean Stinelli (Harrison City, Pa./Penn-Trafford) knocked down a triple as the Presidents began the second half on a 21-2 run to open up a 52-35 lead 5:15 into the second 20 minutes. W&J never looked back, building the lead to 20 points (61-41) and weathering a 10-0 run from Chatham to make it 61-51. That spurt, however, was answered by eight-straight points from
Jonathan DeVito (Pittsburgh, Pa./Central Catholic) over a 3:18 span to extend the margin back up to 18 points, 69-51.
In the first half, W&J used an 18-1 jaunt to build an 18-5 lead just over seven minutes into play. The Presidents built their lead to 14 points early at 24-10, but the Cougars scored 23 of the final 30 points in the frame to hold a two-point edge at the break.
Stinelli was in double figures for the seventh-straight game, turning in 15 points and a career-high 10 rebounds to record his first career double-double. He also added six assists, matching his single-game benchmark.
DeVito, like Stinelli, sank a trio of three-pointers on the day and reached double figures at 11 points. Zappala added nine boards and
Brian Graytok (Greensburg, Pa./Greensburg Central Catholic) had a season-high with eight boards to go with a career- and game-high seven assists.
On the day, W&J held a commanding advantage in the paint, outscoring Chatham 46-18 from in close and holding a 41-23 margin in rebounding. Behind a staggering 66.7 percent (18-of-27) from the field in the second half, the Presidents finished 58.5 percent (31-of-53) for the game.
W&J begins a three-game PAC road swing on Wednesday, Feb. 8 with a 7:30 p.m. tip-off in at Thiel in Greenville, Pa.
