Mens basketball fired off the season against Kanas Christian here at the JAAC. The Celts pulled away near the end to cap off the game with a 74-67 victory.

Andrew Nguyen opened up the season with a quick layup to put the Celts on the board first. The Falcons responded with a 9-2 run to make the game 11-5. St. Thomas would answer with a three from Freddie Ricks to slow the bleeding. However at that point both teams would struggle to generate offense keeping the score 16-13 halfway through the quarter. A three from Zach Golaszewski would tie the game at 16 and push the momentum in the Celts favor as a three from Ricky Altamirano would put St.Thomas ahead 19-18. A layup from Calen Anderson capped off a 12-2 run from the Celt. The Falcons attempted to claw their way back into the game, but great defensive efforts from Adam Kanafani, Andrew Nguyen, and Ricky Altamirano would keep the Clets lead 35-28 headed into halftime.

Opening up the half both teams were on fire as they traded baskets as the Falcons were able to tie up the game at 50 apiece. St. Thomas responded by extinguishing the Falcons and go on a 14-4 run to push their lead to 64-54. The Falcons attempt to make a run late in the game, but their efforts are too late as the Celts lead was too much to handle and end the game 74-67.

Offensively Freddie Ricks had himself a day with a team lead of 16 points while coming off the bench. Calvin Williams dished out four assists in the game. Defensively Calen Anderson was a threat in the paint with 11 rebounds, and Adam Kanafani had two Blocks.

Up next St. Thomas plays Arlington Baptist on November 12th for Homecoming. Come out and support your celts at the JAAC.