Saint Joseph's 61, Richmond 47

3/13/2008 3:10 PM

By TOM CANAVAN
AP Sports Writer

ATLANTIC CITY, N.J. (AP) -Rob Ferguson scored 16 points and led a 16-point first-half run that carried Saint Joseph's to a 61-47 victory over Richmond in the quarterfinals of the Atlantic 10 Conference tournament on Thursday.

Ahmad Nivins added 13 points and Tasheed Carr had 12 as the fifth-seeded Hawks (20-11) advanced to a semifinal showdown with No. 10 Xavier (27-5). The top-seeded Musketeers defeated Dayton 74-65 in the opening quarterfinal.

Saint Joseph's and Xavier split two games earlier this season, with the Hawks ending the Musketeers' 11-game winning streak earlier this month.

Pat Calathes had 11 points for Saint Joseph's, which earned its 13th trip to the conference tournament semifinals.

Kevin Anderson had 16 points for fourth-seeded Richmond (16-14), which was limited to 37 percent shooting from the field in its third lowest scoring output this season.

Saint Joseph's, which rolled to an 80-62 victory over Fordham in the first round, never trailed after Ferguson hit a 3-pointer to ignite the 16-0 run that turned a 12-6 deficit into a 22-12 lead. Nivins added five in the spurt.

Ferguson hit all six of his shots from the field in the game, including three 3-pointers.

The Hawks led 30-22 at the half and they broke the game open with a 10-4 run early in the second half. Saint Joseph's led by as many as 19 points with 5:15 to play.

Dan Geriot, who led the Spiders with a 14.2 point average, was limited to nine points on 4-of-13 shooting. David Gonzalvez had two points, 10 below his average.