DOBBS FERRY, N.Y. (Nov. 26, 2019) – Despite a game-high 26 points and 14 rebounds from redshirt junior Bryan Griffin (Pomona, N.Y./Saint Joseph Regional), the Mercy College men's basketball team dropped a 77-73 decision to Concordia College on Tuesday night at the Victory Hall Sports Center.
The Mavericks (1-6) fail to build off their win over Georgian Court on Saturday, while the Clippers (1-7) earn their first win of the season.
Griffin went 10-of-17 from the floor and had three blocks. Junior Nakeem Hamilton (Bronx, N.Y./Hostos CC) had ten points, six rebounds and five assists and freshman Garrett Kirkland (Springdale, Md./Bishop McNamara) had a career-high ten points on 4-of-6 shooting. Sophomore Korey Lee (Huntington Station, N.Y./Trinity Pawling) added eight points and freshman Brandon Wilson (Farmingdale, N.J./Covenant College Prep) netted seven points.
Concordia was led by Dan Porcic and Dion Herrington who both had a team-high 17 points.
The Clippers took a 5-3 lead at the 17:34 mark of the first half. Mercy answered back with a 14-2 run, capped off by a Kirkland three, which gave the Mavericks a 17-7 lead with 14:07 left in the opening half. Concordia then came back on an 11-3 run to cut the Mercy lead to two, 20-18, with ten minutes on the clock.
A Kirkland three at the 5:57 mark of the opening half gave the Mavericks a 29-20 lead. An Alex White Jr. three with 2:53 on the clock made it a seven-point game, 34-27, in favor of Mercy. The Mavericks went on a 7-0 run to take their largest lead of the game, 41-27, and headed into halftime up, 41-28.
Concordia scored the first points of the second half to make it an 11-point game. A Lee free throw at the 17:20 mark gave the Mavericks another 14-point lead, 46-32. The Clippers slowly got back in the game and went on a 15-2 run to cut the Mercy lead to one, 48-47, with 10:24 remaining.
Mercy got the lead back up to six, 55-49, at the 8:39 mark following a Hamilton three. Mercy increased the lead back to eight, 65-57, with five minutes left following a Wilson layup. Concordia responded with a 13-1 run, capped off by a White Jr. three, to take a 70-66 lead with 1:34 left. The Clippers later took a game-high six-point lead, 74-68, with 33 seconds left. A Griffin three-point play with nine seconds left cut the Concordia lead to two, 75-73. However, Porcic drained a pair of free throws on the Clippers next possession to seal the win.
Mercy shot 46.3 percent (25-of-54) from the floor, 40.0 percent (8-of-20) from downtown and 55.6 percent (15-of-27) from the foul line. Concordia shot 36.8 percent (25-of-68) from the field, 25.0 percent (7-of-28) from beyond the arc and 66.7 percent (20-of-30) from the charity stripe.
Head Coach Michael Maczko and the Mavericks resume action on Monday, December 2nd when they play at Mansfield at 7 p.m.
