Mercy College Men’s Basketball Denied by Spartans in OT, 68-62
NCAA Division II Men's Basketball Result
Saturday, February 14, 2009
Mercy College Men's Basketball Denied by Spartans in OT, 68-62
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Michael Marin |
SPARKILL, NY - The Mercy College men's basketball team fell in overtime on Saturday at St. Thomas Aquinas College, 68-62. Senior Michael Marin (Flushing, NY) led the Mavericks with 22 points and pulled down five rebounds.
Marin's third three-pointer gave Mercy College (0-23, 0-14 ECC) a 56-53 lead with just 29 seconds left in regulation, but Chris Williams (Astoria, NY) beat the final buzzer with his own three-pointer for the Spartans, knotting the game at 56-56 and sending it to overtime.
Pierre Gaspard (Spring Valley, NY) scored the first basket of the extra frame for St. Thomas Aquinas (8-14, 6-8 ECC), but the Mavericks scored the next four points on a pair of free throws from Marin and a layup by senior Justin McMullen (Brooklyn, NY) to regain the lead at 60-58.
After an old-fashioned three-point play by Gaspard gave the Spartans a one-point edge again, they forced a turnover and Akeem Comas (Brooklyn, NY) converted from beyond the arc to stretch the gap to four (64-60). The Mavericks cut the deficit to two on a pair of free throws from junior Jason Charles (Brooklyn, NY), but they went scoreless over the final 2:36 as St. Thomas Aquinas put it away.
Mercy led for most of the first half, building its largest lead of the game at 19-10 on a Marin layup with 9:16 left. The Spartans responded with an 18-5 run to pull ahead 28-24, but Marin netted two more layups in the final 1:19 to lock the contest at 28-28 going into the break.
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Ed Wilson |
St. Thomas Aquinas opened the second stanza with a 14-6 spurt, capped by a Williams three-pointer that gave it a 42-34 advantage. The Mavericks answered with seven straight points and another three-pointer from Marin cut the gap to a point (42-41).
The Spartans led by six again (49-43), but Mercy would not go away, putting together an 8-0 run to regain a 51-49 lead with 2:25 to go in regulation. The two teams traded baskets on the next three possessions before Marin and Williams traded three-pointers to force overtime.
Marin finished the day 8-of-18 from the field, including 3-of-5 from long distance and 3-of-4 at the free throw line. Sophomore Ed Wilson (Bronx, NY) and Charles added 11 points each for the Mavericks.
Comas led all players with 23 points and grabbed five boards. Williams finished with 13 points and Gaspard chipped in 11 for the Spartans.
The Mavericks will be back in action on Wednesday, February 18, when they host Adelphi at 7:00 p.m.
