Stokes Pours in Team-High 17 Points as Men's Basketball Faces Molloy in ECC Home Opener
Box Score DOBBS FERRY, N.Y. (Dec. 9, 2015) – Senior Shaquille Stokes (Harlem, N.Y./University of Hawaii) scored a team-high 17 points and junior William Robinson (Mount Vernon, N.Y./Nyack College) added a double-double as the Mercy College men's basketball team led throughout before falling, 77-76, in a thrilling back-and-forth contest against Molloy College in their ECC home opener on Wednesday night at Mercy Gymnasium.
The Mavericks (1-4, 0-2 ECC) drop their fourth straight game by single digits, while the Lions (2-5, 1-0 ECC) record their second straight win.
Stokes went 7-of-17 from the field, while Robinson picked up his second straight double-double with 13 points and a game-high 13 rebounds. Junior K.J. Rose (Binghamton, N.Y./Fairfield University) added 12 points, seven rebounds and six assists and senior Jason Quijada (Monsey, N.Y./Rockland CC) netted 12 points along with five rebounds. Senior Gerald McClease (New Haven, Conn./Sullivan CC) rounded out five scoring in double figures with 12 points and added eight rebounds.
Molloy was paced by Brandon Williams who had a game-high 27 points on 9-of-20 shooting, while Jaylen Morris chipped in 23 points.
The Mavericks, as has been the case all season, got off to another strong start in their ECC home opener as they jumped out to a 16-11 lead at the 13:24 mark following a Robinson layup. The visitors got within one at 16-15 before Mercy responded with a 15-5 run that saw them build their lead to 11, 31-20, with 6:20 left before half after a Raphael Jennings (Washington, D.C./ASA College) layup.
McClease added a layup at the 2:40 mark that increased the Mavericks lead to a game-high 14 points, 39-25, with 2:40 left in the first. Mercy looked to be on their way to a double-digit halftime lead, but the Lions slowly crept back in and ended the half on a 7-0 run to trail 39-32 at the intermission.
The Mavericks shot an efficient 48.7 percent (19-of-39) from the field in the frame and held a 21-17 edge on the glass, while Molloy hit 41.9 percent (13-of-31) of their attempts.
Mercy came out of the intermission with the first bucket of the half on a McClease layup to increase the lead back to nine, 41-32. However, the Lions scored four unanswered to get within five, 41-36, at the 18:57 mark, the closest they had been since the 11:04 point of the first half. Stokes had an answer with a trifecta and a jumper to get the Mavericks lead back to double digits, 46-36, with 17:48 left.
Molloy ensued with a 17-6 run over the next seven minutes to have their first lead of the game, 53-52, since leading 4-2. The Mavericks did not back down and came right back with an 8-2 run of their own to retake the lead, 60-55, with 8:27 left.
Mercy held a 68-64 advantage with 5:51 left after another Stokes triple, but the Lions followed with nine unanswered to build a 73-68 lead with 3:50 remaining. The Mavericks evened things up at 73-73 on a McClease layup with 1:40 showing on the clock, but Morris came down on the next possession and made a layup to give Molloy the lead back at 75-73.
After a missed jumper by Rose on the next possession, Mercy fouled Williams who made both at the line to make it a two-possession game with 44 seconds left. The Mavericks missed a pair of layups on their following possession but a Molloy turnover kept them alive. On the ensuing possession Robinson was fouled and made one before getting his own rebound on the second one and laying it back in to cut the Lions lead to 77-76 with 17 seconds left.
Mercy tightened up their defense on the next Lions possession and forced another turnover, setting up a potential game-winning situation with eight seconds left. After a pair of timeouts from both teams, Rose dribbled down the floor and got a good look but his shot rimmed in and out, giving Molloy a come-from-behind victory.
The Mavericks ended the night shooting 41.8 percent (33-of-79) from the floor, while the Lions finished the night hitting 50.8 percent (31-of-61) of their attempts. Mercy controlled the boards with a 47-33 edge which they turned into a 17-4 margin in second chance points.
Head Coach Dr. Jody King and the Mavericks look to get back in the win column as they host Queens College on Saturday, December 12th at 2:30 p.m.
