Pope Pieces Together Incredible Game Versus ECC-Foe Bridgeport
Box Score DOBBS FERRY, N.Y. (Jan. 5, 2013) - Mercy College senior forward Joseph Pope (Akron, Ohio) continued in 2013 where he left off in 2012, putting together a stellar game scoring 25 points and bringing down 14 rebounds in men's basketball's 79-66 loss to the University of Bridgeport in East Coast Conference action. With the win, the Purple Knights improved to 7-7 overall and 3-1 in the league. Following the defeat, the Mavericks slipped to 1-10 on the season and 0-3 in the ECC.
The Mavericks fell into a quick 6-0 hole to start off the contest, and then further saw their deficit increase to 20-6 with six minutes gone by. However, Mercy battled hard and was able to trim Bridgeport's lead to as low as six points in the final stretch of the opening half. At halftime, the Purple Knights led, 38-30.
Mercy held its guests scoreless through the first five minutes following the intermission, as the Mavericks scored five points to turn the score to 38-35.
From 16:48 until 13:03, Pope scored all of Mercy's points as he continued to put on a show both on the offensive and defensive ends of the hardwood.
With a little under 13 minutes remaining, senior guard Jerrell Lawrence (Baldwin, N.Y.) nailed a huge three-pointer to trim Bridgeport's lead to 45-42. The Purple Knights then reeled off an 8-2 run to give themselves some breathing room.
At 7:41 remaining, down 57-52, it would be the closest Mercy would get to making a comeback for the rest of the contest.
For the Mavericks, Pope finished with a game-high 25 points, in addition to his 14 rebounds, while junior forward Remi Mignott (Brooklyn, N.Y.) scored 19 points and brought down eight boards. Junior forward Kirk Bailey (Freeport, N.Y.) had eight rebounds as well. Lawrence added nine points and was 2-for-3 from behind the arc.
For the Purple Knights, Ivan Simic scored a team-best 16 points, while Jojo Swift had 15. Dion Waiters and Omari Howard contributed 12 and 11 points, respectively. Simic grabbed 15 rebounds for the double-double.
Head Coach Adam Parmenter and the Mavericks return to action on Wednesday, Jan. 9 when they square off against ECC-opponent NYIT on Long Island. Game time is set for 6:00 p.m.
