Boston College Athletics
Boston College
St. Joseph's
Men's Basketball Loses Regular-Season Opener
November 23, 2002 | Men's Basketball
Nov 23, 2002
CHESTNUT HILL, Mass. (AP) - Jameer Nelson scored 22 points while Pat Carroll went 5-for-5 on 3-pointers and had 19 points Saturday night to lead St. Joseph's to an 85-58 win over Boston College.
Nelson added eight assists and John Bryant scored 12 points for the Hawks (1-0), who lost four seniors to graduation last season.
Uka Agbai had 16 points and Craig Smith 15 for the Eagles (0-1). Boston College had won 27 of its previous 28 openers.
BC's heralded backcourt of Troy Bell and Ryan Sidney was held to five points in the first half. Sidney finished with 13 points and Bell had eight on 2-for-14 shooting.
The smaller and younger Hawks came out sizzling in the opening 6 1/2 minutes, hitting eight of their first 10 shots for a 22-4 lead. Carroll led the way by hitting three of the team's six 3-pointers in the early run.
BC responded behind Smith's spark off the bench, taking advantage inside and closing the gap to 34-29 at halftime.
Sidney scored 10 of BC's 13 points as the Eagles closed it to 46-42 early in the second half. But Nelson scored nine points in an 18-7 run that pushed the lead back to 15.
It was the first regular season meeting of the schools since Jan. 4, 1978. The Hawks, from the Atlantic 10 conference, hold an 11-7 series lead over the Eagles, who play in the Big East.
