Jones, Council lead Bonnies to Homecoming win

Courtesy of GoBonnies.com

Allegany, N.Y. — The St. Bonaventure men’s basketball team scored a 70-63 victory in front of a capacity Homecoming Weekend crowd vs. rival Duquesne Saturday in the Reilly Center, leading nearly wire-to-wire before holding off the Dukes in the final minutes.

Lajae Jones put on a star performance, matching his career-high of 24 points on 8-of-11 shooting from the floor, adding a career-best five steals.

Melvin Council Jr. added 20 points and four assists on Senior Day.

St. Bonaventure (19-9, 7-8 A-10) owned much of the first half, shooting 50 percent from the floor on the way to a 39-30 advantage at the break.

Bona’s lead grew to double digits early in the second half, 44-33, but in typical fashion for a Bonnies-Dukes matchup, things would quickly tighten.

Duquesne was back within a six-point margin with 14:39 to play and continued the comeback.

The Dukes used an 8-0 run to close within a point, 61-60, with all of those points coming as the second chance variety as the visitors owned a +15 margin on the books.

Chance Moore gave the Bonnies a key driving layup for a 63-60 tally with 4:39 remaining. That score remained for two minutes until Council drained a trey for breathing room.

Duquesne (11-16, 6-8 A-10) got back within three with 41 seconds left before Jonah Hinton made two at the line. Bona’s defense got a stop on the next Dukes trip down the floor to put the game on ice.

Tre Dinkins led the way for Duquesne with 15 points.