NYACK, N.Y. (Jan. 24, 2018) – Despite three Mavericks scoring in double figures, the Mercy College men's basketball team fell 91-84 to Berkeley College on Wednesday evening at Bowman Gymnasium.
The Mavericks (8-11) have dropped their last three contests, while the Knights (15-1) increase their win streak to 12 with the victory.
Leading the Mavericks was junior Dequawne Richards (Bronx, N.Y./Hostos CC), who finished the night with 14 points, five rebounds, one block and one steal. Senior Marko Kozul (Astoria, N.Y. / Felician University) added 13 points, three rebounds and three blocks. Junior Sal Barbetto (New City, N.Y./Rockland CC) recorded ten points, a game high six assists, three steals, and two rebounds.
For the Knights, Michael Taylor recorded a game high 30 points and also added four rebounds, three assists, two blocks and two steals. Ricardo Ayuso finished the night with 26 points, six rebounds and three assists. Johnnie Green had the only double-double of the night with 14 points, ten rebounds and two assists.
The first half of action was an even matchup of the Mavericks and Knights, with the score being tied on five separate occasions. The Knights got on the board first, with a layup from Taylor. The Mavericks answered back with six unanswered points to get the Mavericks offense started. The Knights were ready to play however, as they then recorded seven unanswered points to bring the score to 9-6. A three pointer from senior Kelvin Howard (Temple Hills, Md./Baltimore City CC) followed by a layup from Richards put the Mavericks back on top with 16:12 to go. The half remained an even game until the Knights were able to once again record seven unanswered points to give them a 28-23 lead.
The Mavericks were able to get their offensive momentum at the four minute mark, when junior Chris Myers (Hackensack, N.J./Southeastern CC) was able to set Richards up for a dunk that was followed by a jump shot from Barbetto, giving the Mavericks the 35-34 lead. The Mavericks continued to fight offensively, and eventually entered halftime with a 47-43 lead.
The Knights came out to score a quick six points at the start of the second half to take the 49-47 lead. A pair of three pointers and two successful free throw shots would put the Knights up 60-51 with 15:39 to go. Despite only being shy by two points on multiple occasions, the Mavericks were unable to overcome the deficit and eventually fell to the Knights 91-84.
Mercy shot 47.8 percent (32-of-67) from the floor, 40.0 percent (8-of-20) from downtown and 52.2 percent (12-of-23) from the foul line. The Knights shot 43.6 percent (34-of-78) from the floor, 38.1 percent (8-of-21) from beyond the arc and 83.3 percent (15-of-18) from the charity stripe.
Head Coach Michael Maczko and the Mavericks resume conference play on Friday, January 26th when they travel to Daemen College to face the Wildcats at 8 p.m.
