Something about Steve DeLuca and Sunday afternoons.
For the second consecutive Sunday afternoon the sophomore stud registered a career high 28 points, this time on nine for twelve shooting from the floor and a near flawless nine for ten from the charity stripe.
None were bigger than his 6 points with Brandeis down 66-63 with 6:20 to go that propelled them to a slim 69-66 lead. A nifty Kwame Graves-Fulgham 08 three point play later and the Judges were well on their way to a 77-70 over UAA rival Emory.
The inspired play in front of a throng of alumni and undergrads, upped the Judges record to 10-7 (3-4 UAA). An ECAC berth seems likely, and an NCAA invitation is not out of the question.
The Emory win came less than 48 hours after Brandeis defeated Case Western Friday night, giving them their first UAA winning streak of the season.
DeLuca may have been Brandeis MVP, but it was not a solo act. Graves-Fulgham was flawless from the field (4-4), finishing with 13 points. Guard Florian Rexhepi 08 tallied 11 points along with a game high 5 assists. As a team, the Judges converted on a 51 percent clip from the field in the game including a 58 percent clip after half time. The Judges outrebounded the visitors 35-30.
Emory was led by Eric Barvins 07 24 points, 17 coming in the second half. Guard Spiros Ferderigos 08 and Johnny Pinto 09 had 16 points a piece.
It is not long before the two East Coast foes meet again. The series continues tonight in Atlanta.
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It was really only a matter of time before the Amherst college would show why it was ranked 10th in Division III baskeball.
That time came when the visiting Jefs went on a 23-9 rampagein the final minutes of a 82-69 defeat of the host Judges. It was a valiant effort by your Judges. They were even ahead 60-59 with 9:41 remaining after Florian Rexhepi 08 converted a jumper. The lead was tenuous as the Jefs scored 12 of the games next 14 points, while holding Deis to 3 of 13 shooting in the final minutes. Brandeis fell behind early 24-15 as Amherst coverted 8 of their first 9 field goal attempts.
The Judges were led by Steve DeLuca 08 who had a game high 25 points. His 25 point performance marked the 4th straight game which he registered at least 20 points. Joe Coppens '08 tallied 19 points on 6 of 12 shooting along with a team high 8 rebounds.
Amherst had four players in double digits, including John Beford (22 points) and Andrew Olson (21 points). In this non-conference game the Judges had a meager seven bench points and a season low total of eight assists.
