DOBBS FERRY, N.Y. (Jan. 25, 2020) – Despite five Mavericks scoring in double figures, the Mercy College men's basketball team dropped a 107-87 decision to ECC foe No. 17/25 University of Bridgeport in a Coaches vs. Cancer game on Saturday afternoon at Victory Hall Sports Center.
The Mavericks (4-14, 2-6 ECC) have dropped two games in a row and sit one game out of the final ECC Tournament spot. The Purple Knights (16-2, 8-0 ECC) have now won 12 games in a row and remain unbeaten in ECC play.
Redshirt junior Bryan Griffin (Pomona, N.Y./Saint Joseph Regional) led Mercy with a game-high 20 points, 12 rebounds and four blocks. Freshman Garrett Kirkland (Springdale, Md./Bishop McNamara) netted 17 points on 6-for-12 shooting and junior Nakeem Hamilton (Bronx, N.Y./Hostos CC) nearly recorded a triple-double finishing with 15 points, nine assists and nine rebounds. Senior Lamont Williams Jr. (Irvington, N.J./County College of Morris) tallied a season-high 14 points with seven rebounds and sophomore Dondre Barnes (Atlanta, Ga./South Atlanta) netted 13 points and six rebounds.
Bridgeport was led by D'Vonne Trumbo who had a team-high 19 points.
The nationally-ranked Purple Knights jumped out to a 17-8 lead with 12:51 remaining in the opening half, forcing a Mercy timeout. The Mavericks came out of the timeout on a 15-3 run, capped off by a Hamilton jumper, which gave Mercy a 23-20 lead at the 8:18 mark.
Bridgeport followed with a 4-0 run to take a 24-23 lead, but the Mavericks continued to battle and went on a 4-0 run of their own to retake the lead at 27-24. The visitors answered with a 9-0 run to take a 33-27 lead with 4:32 remaining in the opening half. Mercy quickly responded with five straight points from Griffin and Kirkland to get within one, 33-32, with 3:50 on the clock. Bridgeport followed with a basket before Brandon Wilson drained to free throws to make it 35-34 in favor of the visitors.
A three from the Purple Knights gave themselves a four-point lead before Kirkland nailed a jumper to cut the deficit to two, 38-36, with 2:15 left in the half. Bridgeport ended the half on a 6-0 run to head into halftime up, 44-36.
A Williams Jr. three to open the second half got the Mavericks to within five, 44-39. However, Bridgeport ensued with a 13-2 run to increase the lead to 16, 57-41, with 15:14 left. A Barnes free throw at the 11:40 mark cut the Bridgeport lead to 12, 62-50. The Purple Knights followed with an 8-2 run to take a 70-52 lead.
Mercy continued to claw their way back into the game and a Kirkland three with 6:51 left got the Mavericks back to within 13, 79-66. Bridgeport came back on an 11-1 run to increase the lead to 23, 90-67, with 4:16 remaining and held on for the win.
Mercy shot 50.9 percent (29-for-57) from the floor, 50.0 percent (11-for-22) from downtown and 66.7 percent (18-for-27) from the foul line. Bridgeport shot 44.6 percent (41-for-92) from the field, 37.8 percent (14-for-37) from beyond the arc and 61.1 percent (11-for-18) from the charity stripe. Mercy held a 46-44 edge on the glass and Bridgeport used 27 Mercy turnovers to hold a 32-18 edge in points off turnovers.
Head Coach Michael Maczko and the Mavericks resume action on Saturday, February 1st when they play at St. Thomas Aquinas at 3 p.m.
