LACEY, Wash. – Nineteen. Nineteen times the lead changed hands between the Saints and The Evergreen State College Geoducks. It was an instant classic between the in-town rivals, with Saint Martin's edging out the Geoducks 88-83 inside Marcus Pavilion on Sunday night.
 
Demonte Malloy and Marky Adams each featured a double-double on the night. Malloy led the team in scoring and rebounding at 22 points, and 12 rebounds. Adams added in with 18-and-10 while Alex Schumacher and John Moore combined for 32 points. Evergreen State's Elijiah Fuller lit up the building with 37 points, constantly keeping the Geoducks in the mix of the action.
 
Fuller started the game off with a bang, scoring the first 14 points for the Geoducks, but the Saints kept stride. Three different Saints connected on 3-pointers in the opening four minutes of action.
 
LaBrandon Price proceeded to take over the scoring for Evergreen State, scoring their next 11 points. Price and Fuller amounted to the Geoducks' first 27 points of the game, and the only two players in the scoring ledger for the first nine minutes.
 
However, despite the offensive surge, the Saints answered each Geoducks' basket with a basket of their own. The lead for Evergreen State peaked at seven points but hovered around mostly around a point or two for most of the first half. Saint Martin's managed to take the lead on a jumper from Logan Rooney, 42-41, and later by a dunk from Adams. In the closing possessions, Evergreen State knocked down a couple baskets to carry a 51-50 lead into halftime.
 
The second half was more seesaw action between the two squads, with the lead constantly switch from one to another. Schumacher connected on multiple clutch 3-pointers, while Malloy came alive down the paint to carry the Saints' offense. Evergreen State opened up a 73-68 at the halfway point, but the Saints responded in turn.
 
3-pointers from Schumacher and Malloy lifted the Saints on a 10-2 run to open up a 78-75 lead with seven minutes left to go. Evergreen State regained the lead one final time down the stretch, but a pair of Malloy free throws, and a basket by Adams quickly turned the momentum back to Saint Martin's. SMU's defense stepped up in the final five minutes, only allowing one field goal for the Geoducks, and Saint Martin's walked away victors to a tune of 88-83.
 
The starting lineup for the Saints all logged over 30 minutes of action, with Malloy and Adams each topping out at 38 minutes. Adams finished 9-for-12 from the field, while Schumacher notched a 7-for-14 night, with four 3-pointers. Moore led the team with four assists, while CJ Jennings contributed seven points, and three assists.
 
Saint Martin's as a team shot 35-for-72 (48.6 percent) from the floor, along with 9-for-28 (32.1 percent) from beyond the arc, and 9-for-13 (69.2 percent) at the line. The Saints collected 35 rebounds with 13 assists on 12 turnovers, along with six steals and a block.
 
The GNAC conference action begins for Saint Martin's in the upcoming week, with the Saints traveling to Northwest Nazarene on Thursday, December 5 for a 6:30 p.m. tip. Live stats and video of the games will be available on smusaints.com.