MANCHESTER, N.H. – Junior Mike Stys (Hooksett, N.H.) recorded a career-high 19 points as Southern New Hampshire University downed Stonehill College 63-46 in Northeast-10 men's basketball Tuesday night at the SNHU Fieldhouse.  The Penmen won their second straight to improve to 5-2 and 3-2 in the NE-10, while the Skyhawks fall to 3-3 and 2-3 in the league.

The win snapped a six-game Stonehill win streak in the series, with the last Penmen victory coming in 2008-09, and the first home win for SNHU over the Skyhawks since 2004-05.

Stys, who scored 13 points in the first half, finished 5-8 from the floor, 3-5 behind the arc and 6-7 at the free throw line while also recording four assists.  Rodney Sanders (Linden, N.J.) finished with 12 points, six rebounds and four assists, while David Madol (Manchester, N.H.) added 11 points and six rebounds off the bench.  CJ Marriro (Boston, Mass.) added eight points, 10 rebounds and five assists.

Carter Smith was the lone Stonehill player to finish in double figures as he went 7-7 at the free throw line and notched 14 points.

Southern New Hampshire never trailed and opened up a 17-7 lead seven minutes into the game following a layup by Aleksandar Dobrovic (Podgorica, Montenegro).  Stonehill pulled within six, 22-16, on a Brian Hamor layup with 5:55 left in the first half, but the Penmen closed the half on a 14-1 run and a layup by Madol with 34 seconds left before halftime gave the hosts a 36-17 halftime lead.

Stonehill chipped at the Penmen advantage in the opening minutes of the second half, cutting the lead to 13 twice, the last on a Raheem May-Thompson tip-in with 13:31 left that made it 42-29.  A conventional three-point play by Marriro with 12:27 on the clock capped a 7-0 spurt to make it 49-29, and the Penmen took their largest lead, 53-32, on a pair of Marriro free throws with just over seven minutes to play.  SNHU maintained at least a 15-point cushion the rest of the way.

Southern New Hampshire limited Stonehill to just 26.8% shooting for the contest, including a 4-20 effort behind the arc, while the Skyhawks converted just 12 of their 24 free throw attempts.  The Penmen, who outrebounded Stonehill 41-38, shot 42% for the game and went 16-20 at the charity stripe.

The Penmen return to action Saturday afternoon when they travel to Merrimack College for a 2:00 Northeast-10 contest.

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