NEWBURGH, NY – Trailing 34-19 at the half and looking like a team playing in their first game of the season, the Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute men's basketball team outscored Mount Saint Mary College, 58-36, in the second half to steal a 77-70 victory in their season opener. The Blue Knights dropped to 1-2 on the young season.

The Red Hawks opened the second half on an 18-2 run that actually gave them the lead (37-36) with 15:02 remaining. Senior Sam Simmons (Newburgh, N.Y.), limited to just two points in the first half, was huge during the run, hitting 4-of-4 attempts from the field.

Later in the half with the game tied at 47, Mount Saint Mary senior Chris Harrison (Baldwin, N.Y.) banked home a layup to give the Blue Knights a two point cushion with 11:45 to go. It would be the last time the Mount would lead in the game as RPI countered with the next eight points to seize a 55-49 advantage. Junior Eric Anderson (Merrimack, N.H.) hit two three-pointers during the eight point string and sophomore Ike Rodriguez (San Antonio, Texas) hit a tough jumper.

The Red Hawks extended their lead to eight as Simmons made four consecutive attempts at the free throw line, making the score 63-55 with 5:30 remaining. But the Blue Knights wouldn't go away. Harrison put back a miss at the 5:19 mark to trim the deficit to six and then sophomore Matt Weinberger (Washingtonville, N.Y.) swished a three-pointer from the corner to make it 63-60.

A layup by senior Alex Kuchar (Rutherford, N.J.) at the 1:46 mark cut the RPI lead to just one. After sophomore Jeremy Bull (East Greenbush, N.Y.) hit a pair of free throws for the Red Hawks, Mount sophomore Tim Morris (Greenwich, N.Y.) hit a clutch three-pointer from the corner to tie the game at 69.

With 1:09 to play, RPI took the lead for good as junior Jeremy Colon (Manchester, N.H.) hit a layup after a nice feed from Rodriguez. Weinberger made just one-of-two free throws at the other end and the Red Hawks extended their lead to three as Rodriguez knocked home a pair of free throws. After a time-out with just 32 seconds to play, the Blue Knights turned the ball over on what would be their final possession and the Red Hawks salted away the game at the charity stripe.

Simmons finished with a game-high 22 points and 9 rebounds, with 20 of his points coming in the second half. Junior Tim Rupp (Staten Island, N.Y.) had 16 for the Red Hawks on just 6-of-17 shooting. Bull came up big at the free throw line down the stretch, hitting 8-of-10 attempts, all in the final three and a half minutes.

Morris led the Blue Knights with 19 points and 6 rebounds. Kuchar scored 18 points but also had a team-high 7 turnovers. Harrison had 13 points and 6 boards and Weinberger posted his second double-double in three games with 12 points and 10 assists.

Up next for the Mount is their Skyline Conference opener. The Blue Knights travel to Maritime College for an 8:00 p.m. start on Tuesday, December 2.