WASHINGTON, D.C. (Feb. 10, 2018) – Despite a game-high 21 points from junior Sal Barbetto (New City, N.Y./Rockland CC), the Mercy College men's basketball team dropped a last-second 83-81 decision to ECC foe University of the District of Columbia on Saturday afternoon at the UDC Sports Complex.
The Mavericks (9-16, 5-10 ECC) have dropped three games in a row and fall a half game behind Molloy for the sixth and final ECC Tournament spot. The Firebirds (6-18, 4-11 ECC) snap a two-game losing streak with the win.
Barbetto shot 8-of-13 from the floor, while senior Kelvin Howard (Temple Hills, Md./Baltimore City CC) added 13 points, eight rebounds and three assists. Senior Brendon Smith (Baltimore, Md./Baltimore City CC) netted 11 points and five rebounds and senior Marko Kozul (Astoria, N.Y./Felician University) contributed ten points and seven rebounds.
UDC was led by Danny Shand and Traevon Butler who had a team-high 18 points apiece.
Mercy got off to a strong start jumping out to a 12-6 lead at the 15:13 mark following a Smith dunk. After a layup from Butler, the Mavericks ensued with five straight points from Amir Atkins (Alexandria, Va./Hagerstown CC) and Chris Myers (Hackensack, N.J./Southeastern CC) to build a 17-8 lead at the 13:30 mark. Mercy continued to hold a nine-point advantage with 9:44 remaining in the half after an Atkins layup.
The Firebirds responded by cutting the deficit to four, 28-24, at the 5:28 mark, but the Mavericks ensued with a 6-0 run, capped off by a Howard layup, that gave Mercy a 34-24 lead. Mercy would head into halftime with a 41-33 lead after shooting 53.1 percent in the half.
The second half saw Howard and Smith start the scoring to increase the Mavericks lead to a game-high 12 points, 45-33, with 18:40 remaining. Mercy continued to hold a 12-point lead at the 17:25 mark after a Smith dunk. UDC went on a 10-2 run to get within four, 49-45, forcing a Maverick timeout. Out of the timeout, Mercy scored five straight points to put the lead back to nine, 54-45, with 13:32 remaining.
Barbetto drained a three pointer at the 11:33 mark that gave the Mavericks an 11-point lead, 60-49. The hosts followed with a 9-1 run that got the Firebirds to within three, 61-58, with 8:30 left. Barbetto hit another jumper at the 4:49 mark that gave Mercy a five-point margin, 71-66. However, UDC responded with a 12-6 run to take their first lead of the half, 78-77, with 2:04 remaining.
Barbetto drained two free throws on the next Mavericks possession to give Mercy a 79-78 lead with 1:40 on the clock. After a Mercy foul, Shand made a pair at the charity stripe to give the Firebirds an 80-79 advantage with 1:33 left. Following a turnover by both teams, freshman Matthew Alectus (Hollywood, Fla./Hallandale) made a layup that put Mercy back on top, 81-80, with 50 seconds left.
Shand went 1-of-2 from the foul line at the 37-second mark to knot the score up at 81-81. After a Mercy turnover with three seconds left and a UDC timeout, Shand drained the game-winning basket at the buzzer to give the Firebirds the victory.
Mercy shot 52.5 percent (32-of-61) from the floor, 27.3 percent (6-of-22) from downtown and 84.6 percent (11-of-13) from the foul line. UDC shot 45.5 percent (30-of-66) from the field, 54.5 percent (6-of-11) from long distance and 70.8 percent (17-of-24) from the charity stripe.
Head Coach Michael Maczko and the Mavericks resume action on Wednesday, February 14th when they host Mansfield University for Senior Night at 8 p.m. at Nyack College.
