THOMASVILLE, Ga.- The Ave Maria University men's basketball team could not dig themselves out of a 35-7 hole, and dropped a 84-68 decision to the Thomas University Night Hawks on Thursday night. Thomas shot a blistering 13-for-18 from three-point range in the victory.

Both teams hit their first two shots of the game, evening the game at five less than 90 seconds in. From there, Thomas went on a 30-2 run over the next 12 and a half minutes, a run that included 25 unanswered points from the Night Hawks. The 30-2 run saw the Gyrenes miss 13 of their 14 field goal attempts and turn the ball over seven times. Ave Maria was able to outscore Thomas over the final six minutes of the half by a 10-7 margin, which gave the Night Hawks a 42-17 lead at halftime.

The Gyrenes caught fire in the second half, but were never able to get any closer than nine points. An 11-0 run supplied solely by Gianpaolo Riccio pulled the Thomas lead down from 20 points to nine with 11:19 to play, but the Night Hawks immediately hit two three-pointers to expand the lead to 15 points. As a team, the Gyrenes shot 59.3 percent from the field in the second half, and made eight of their 14 three-point attempts. 

Riccio was Ave Maria's leading scorer, pouring in 25 of his 27 points in the second half. Greenan Sullivan and Jonathan Simmons were also in double figures, scoring 12 and 10 points, respectively.

Thomas' shooting night was led by Javoris Cooks, who hit five three-pointers en route to a team-high 17 poinys. Johnnel Ginnie scored 14 points, Jalen Bonds added 13, and Katrell Myers chipped in 10 to round out the double figure scorers for the Night Hawks.

Ave Maria's trip to the Peach State continues on Saturday, when the Gyrenes battle Coastal Georgia in Brunswick. The first meeting between the two teams came down to the wire, with the Mariners earning a 71-68 victory in Southwest Florida. The rematch is scheduled for a 4:00 p.m. tip on Saturday.