Antigonish, N.S. - The Acadia Axemen (8-5) scored a 82-74 victory over the StFX X-Men (1-10) in AUS basketball action Friday night at Oland Centre.
On the strength of four quick points from Ben Miller (Winnipeg, MB), the visitors jumped to an 8-2 edge in the opening minutes of the first quarter.
Sparked by two three-pointers from freshman guard Tristen Ross (Truro, NS), the X-Men made a 16-5 run to take a 18-13 advantage. Also, in that stretch, Kevin Bercy (Kanata, ON) secured a steal and took it coast-to-coast for a lay-up and then followed with a tip-in on an offensive rebound.
Keyed by four points from Erik Nissen (Quispamsis, NB), including a left-handed dunk, the Axemen made a 6-1 spurt to close the opening 10 minutes.
The teams were tied 19-19 after the first quarter.
In the second quarter, X-Men first-year guard Brandon Velocci (Brooklyn, NY) started the scoring with a three-pointer.
The sides traded baskets in a closely-contested period, with the X-Men taking their largest lead - six - on the third three-pointer of the night from Ross. Point guard Davonte Provo (East Preston, NS) also chipped in a basket from beyond the arc.
The final points of the first half came from AJ Simmonds (Dartmouth, NS), who drained a three-pointer in the final 30 seconds.
The sides were deadlocked 38-38 at the intermission.
In the third quarter, led by a pair of Bercy baskets, the X-Men jumped to a six-point margin.
StFX kept their edge for most of the period, until Miller drained a three-pointer with under three minutes remaining to give Acadia a 48-46 advantage. That ignited a 12-5 Axemen surge that gave the visitors a 57-51 lead after three quarters.
With the first basket of the fourth quarter from Simmonds, Acadia had their largest advantage of the game - eight points.
Later in the frame, on a three-pointer from Nick DePalma (Bedford, NS), the Axemen led 62-52.
On a lay-up from Bercy and an old-fashioned three-point play from Julius Antoine (Woodbridge, ON), the X-Men trimmed the disadvantage to five points.
The Axemen responded with five straight points, including a DePalma jumper from downtown to make it 69-57.
With a lift from Cameron Crieghtney (Toronto, ON), who scored five consecutive points, including a three-pointer, the X-Men reeled off an 8-0 spurt to cut the lead to 69-65.
The Axemen extended to a late 77-69 edge, before the X-Men scored four in row, including a breakaway dunk from Bercy.
Up by four points in the final minute, Smith scored on a second chance, after Creightney made a soaring block of a Miller lay-up opportunity, to make it 79-73 for Acadia.
The X-Men would get no closer, as the Axemen made their free throws in the final seconds to seal the deal.
Miller led the winners with 25 points, while Smith, the Subway player of the game, contributed 23. Nissen, with 15, also scored in double digits.
Miller also chipped in nine rebounds, four assists, one steal and one blocked shot, while Smith added six rebounds, four assists, four steals and three blocked shots.
Nissen, who completed the double-double with 10 rebounds, added two steals and one blocked shot.
Antoine, the X-Men player of the game, scored a team-high 22 points, while adding six rebounds, three steals and two assists.
Bercy had a double-double - 16 points and 11 rebounds - along with five assists and three steals. Ross, who also hit double figures with 12 points, added three assists, two steals and one rebound.
Along with five points, Creightney contributed two assists and one blocked shot.
The Axemen shot 52.5 per cent from the field, while the X-Men hit at a 41.7 per cent clip.
The X-Men will return to action Tuesday, Jan. 26, when they travel to Sullivan Fieldhouse in Sydney to face the rival Cape Breton University Capers in a 8 p.m. start.
The Axemen will be back on the court Saturday, Jan. 30, when they visit the Scotiabank Centre in Halifax to battle the Dalhousie Tigers, with tip-off scheduled for 8 p.m.
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