COLCHESTER, Vt. - The Saint Michael's College men's basketball team lost its second consecutive contest to a regionally-ranked foe on Saturday, falling against Adelphi University, 89-77, in the Ross Sports Center. The Purple Knights are 2-12 overall and 1-8 in the Northeast-10 Conference, and the Panthers, who sit ninth in the latest D2SIDA East Region Media Poll, improved to 12-4 and 5-3.

Saint Michael's capped a four-game homestand by being paced by senior Matt Bonds (Accokeek, Md./North Point), who put forth a career-high 35 points to go along with 11 rebounds and two assists. Bonds shot 13-of-21 from the floor and 9-of-12 on free throws while also hauling down five offensive rebounds. It was his ninth double-double and 11th 20-point outing of the year. Classmate David Sullivan (Egg Harbor Township, N.J./Saint Augustine Prep) went for 13 points and eight boards, including four offensive, while shooting 4-of-9 from the field and 5-of-6 on freebies. Sullivan hit double digits in scoring for the sixth time in seven games.

Sophomore Winston Jones (Valley Stream, N.Y./Valley Stream Central) added eight points, classmate Derek Cheatom (Buffalo, N.Y./The Park School of Buffalo) notched seven points and three assists, and junior Colin Richey (Upton, Mass./Choate Rosemary Hall) totaled six assists. Senior Zaire Williams (Paterson, N.J./Newark Academy) collected five helpers and three steals, while sophomore Levi Holmes III (East Brunswick, N.J./Rutgers Prep) also had three takeaways. Saint Michael's committed a season-low 11 turnovers while holding advantages of 18-5 in offensive rebounding and 50-34 in points in the paint.

Bonds pushed his career point total to 1,268 during the contest, taking over 22nd in program annals while passing former teammates Corey Crawford II '15 (1,248) and James Cambronne '15 (1,261), as well as Brendan Mullins '07 (1,263). He now has 947 rebounds, claiming the 350th offensive board of his career on Saturday.

Six Panthers scored in double figures. Sophomore Jack Laffey totaled 19 points behind a 5-of-9 three-point effort, junior Michael Coffey totaled 18 points, four assists and three steals, and sophomore Nick Cambio had 13 points and six rebounds off the bench. Junior Manny Suarez totaled 11 points in 13 minutes, senior Chris Millender added 11, and sophomore Conor McGuinness turned in 10 points and eight assists, just a shade less than his Division II-leading 9.2 helpers per game. Adelphi shot 55.8 percent overall and 12-of-28 on three-pointers, making as many field goals as the hosts (29) in 20 fewer attempts.

Suarez scored the first seven Panther points by the time 2:14 had elapsed, but two Holmes free throws and four Jones points kept Saint Michael's within 7-6 at 16:56 of the first half. Sullivan hit two free throws - at 13:01 - for the only Purple Knights points in the ensuing six-plus minutes, as Adelphi charged ahead with a 26-8 run, with Coffey scoring eight points. Five points from Bonds sparked a 7-2 response, drawing the hosts within 35-21, but McGuinness scored eight points in 53 seconds to push the lead to 22. Saint Michael's ended the half with the final seven points, with first-year Eli DiGrande's (Essex Junction, Vt./Essex) three-point play the instigator.

After the visitors scored the first six points of the second half, the next seven came from Purple Knights, with Cheatom's five straight points making it 56-42 with 16:32 to go. Sullivan's lay-in created a 13-point margin at 12:14 and, after Coffey buried two freebies to produce a 75-55 score, seniors combined for every point of a 9-0 surge. Sullivan hit two free throws, Williams canned a three, and Bonds made two free throws before his jumper cut the deficit to 75-64 with 6:47 left. However, the Purple Knights came no closer than 10, with 1:06 left, Bonds capped a personal 6-0 run on a lay-up.

In their lone contest between now and Jan. 21, the Purple Knights visit Pace University on Tuesday at 7:30 p.m.