ROCHESTER, N.Y. (Jan. 12, 2024) – Despite a game-high 25 points from graduate student Garrett Kirkland (Springdale, Md./Bishop McNamara), the Mercy University men's basketball team dropped a hard-fought 89-83 decision to ECC foe Roberts Wesleyan University on Friday night at the Voller Athletic Center.
The Mavericks (1-12, 0-4 ECC) have dropped two games in a row and remain winless in ECC play. The Redhawks (5-7, 2-1 ECC) have won six straight meetings against Mercy.
Mercy was led by Kirkland who had a season-high 25 points on 8-of-13 shooting from the floor and 7-of-12 shooting from downtown with five rebounds. Senior Alex May (Englewood, N.J./St. Francis College (Brooklyn) netted 15 points and four rebounds and junior Taj Chiles (Harlem, N.Y./University of Bridgeport) recorded 13 points on 4-of-7 shooting to go along with a game-high five assists. Senior Jayden Dewaal (Toronto, Canada/Trinidad State Junior College) added a double-double with 12 points on 5-of-10 shooting to go with a game-high 13 rebounds and senior Jay Turner (Waterbury, Conn./Notre Dame West Haven Prep) scored 11 points on 4-of-4 shooting.
Roberts Wesleyan was led by Marlon Pratt Jr. who had a team-high 18 points.
The Redhawks jumped out to an early 7-3 lead at the 18:10 mark of the first half. Mercy stormed back on a 26-7 run to take their largest lead of the game, 29-14, after a Kirkland three with 10:19 left in the half.
Two straight Roberts Wesleyan points made it 29-16 before a Turner layup gave Mercy a 31-16 lead with 7:48 remaining in the half. The hosts answered with a 17-4 run to cut the Mavericks lead to two, 35-33, with 3:08 on the clock. A mini 7-2 run by Mercy increased the lead back to seven, 42-35, after a Sean Conroy (Staten Island, N.Y./Trinity-Pawling) jumper with 1:07 left. The Redhawks ended the half with five straight points to cut the Mavericks lead to two, 42-40, at halftime.
Mercy opened the second half on a 9-2 run to increase the lead to nine, 51-42, after a Kirkland three with 18:49 left. The Redhawks scored the next six points to make it 51-48, but a Chiles layup with 15:52 on the clock built the Mavericks lead back to seven, 58-51.
The Mavericks later held a 66-61 lead with 11:45 remaining following a Chiles jumper. Roberts Wesleyan ensued with a 9-2 run to take their first lead since the first half at 70-68 at the 8:12 mark. A Jamal Jacobs (Tampa, Fla./West Virginia Wesleyan College) jumper tied the game on the next Mercy possession and Chiles went 2-of-2 from the line to give Mercy the lead back at 72-70. Ryan Hudson tied the game at 72-72 before four consecutive points from May gave the Mavericks a 76-72 lead with 5:18 remaining. Following a Pratt Jr. layup, Chiles gave Mercy a four-point lead again, 78-74, with 4:25 on the clock.
The hosts rallied with a 9-0 run to take an 83-78 lead with 2:56 left in the game. Chiles later went 2-of-2 from the line to make it 83-80. Following a Mavericks defensive stop, Kirkland drained another three at the 1:24 mark to tie the game at 83-83. The ensuing Roberts Wesleyan possession saw Jean Aristil connect on a corner three to give the hosts an 86-83 lead with 59 seconds left. Mercy would be unable to score again and the Redhawks went 3-of-4 from the line in the final 26 seconds to secure the 89-83 win.
Mercy shot a season-high 51.9 percent (28-of-54) from the floor, 50.0 percent (9-of-18) from downtown and 66.7 percent (18-of-27) from the foul line. Roberts Wesleyan shot 46.2 percent (30-of-65) from the field, 32.4 percent (12-of-37) from beyond the arc and 73.9 percent (17-of-23) from the charity stripe. Mercy held a 39-28 edge on the glass. The 51.9 percent shooting from the floor is the highest the Mavericks have shot from the floor since they shot 52.8 percent against Cheyney on February 1, 2023. The 51.9 percent shooting is the highest for the Mavericks in an ECC contest since they shot 56.9 percent against Molloy on February 14, 2021.
Head Coach Chris Watts and the Mavericks resume action on Tuesday, January 16th when they play at Chestnut Hill at 7 p.m.
