Basketball Beats Albertus, 81-72

NEW HAVEN , Conn. – Devon Diliberto (Waterbury., Conn.) led six players in double-figures with 22 points as the University of Saint Joseph basketball team defeated Albertus Magnus 81-72 Wednesday in a Great Northeast Athletic Conference game at Albertus.

St. Joseph improved to 12-12 overall and 5-5 in the GNAC. Albertus is 5-19 and 2-8.

Diliberto finished the game with 1,386 career points which allowed her to pass Val Briggs (1,380 from 1997-2001) and become the second all-time leading scorer in USJ history. USJ Hall of Famer Stacy Manfredi scored a school record 1,806 from 1994-98. 

Mary Hyde (Derby, Conn.) and Shaua Sullivan (Rocky Hill, Conn.) both had double-doubles for USJ. Hyde had 12 points and 12 rebounds and came close to a triple-double with nine assists and Sullivan had 10 points and 15 boards. Brianna Ferraro (Waterbury, Conn.) had 15 points and seven assists for USJ, Lindsey Dionne (Portland, Conn.) scored 12 and Heather Framski (Prospect, Conn.) had 10.

Dilibeto scored 11 in the first half to help USJ to a 34-29 halftime lead. Lianna Carrero, who had a game-high 29 points for Albertus, had consecutive three-pointers early in the second half to trim a USJ lead to 50-48 with 12:24 to play. But Hyde and Dionne scored three-points apiece in a quick run to but USJ back in control at 60-52 with nine minutes left and the Blue Jays maintained a small edge to the finish.

USJ outrebounded Albertus 48-32 leading to more second-chance points (13-6) and USJ also scored more points off turnovers, 21-10. Albertus stayed in the game primarily through shooting 47.3 percent (26-for-55) from the floor to the Blue Jays' 40.5 percent (30-for-74).

USJ hosts Johnson & Wales Sat. Feb. 22 at 1 p.m. Diliberto, Hyde and Sullivan will be honored before the game as part of Senior Day.