STATEN ISLAND, N.Y. (Jan. 24, 2024) -Despite a career-high 23 points from junior Taj Chiles (Harlem, N.Y./University of Bridgeport), the Mercy University men's basketball team dropped a 96-81 decision at ECC foe College of Staten Island on Wednesday night at the Sports and Recreation Center.
The Mavericks (1-16, 0-7 ECC) have dropped six games in a row, while the Dolphins (12-6, 6-1 ECC) sweep the season series with Mercy for the first time.
Mercy was led by Chiles who had a game-high 23 points on 10-of-15 shooting with a team-high six assists to go along with five rebounds. Graduate student Garrett Kirkland (Springdale, Md./Bishop McNamara) added 17 points on 5-of-10 shooting from downtown and sophomore Sean Conroy (Staten Island, N.Y./Trinity-Pawling) netted 14 points. Senior Alex May (Englewood, N.J./St. Francis College (Brooklyn) recorded 12 points and a team-high seven rebounds. Senior Jay Turner (Waterbury, Conn./Notre Dame West Haven Prep) contributed seven points and five rebounds.
Staten Island was led by Messiah Mallory who had a team-high 22 points and a game-high 11 rebounds.
Mercy jumped out to an early 5-1 lead after a Chiles layup and later held a 7-4 advantage following a May layup at the 16:57 mark of the first half. Staten Island went on a 15-0 run to take a 19-7 lead with 12:54 left in the half. The Mavericks stormed back on a 21-8 run to retake the lead at 28-27, following an Asa Kone (Bronx, N.Y./Eagle Academy for Young Men) dunk, with 4:39 on the clock.
The Dolphins closed the half on a 16-4 run to head into halftime with a 43-32 lead.
A May free throw at the 16:18 mark of the second half cut the deficit to 10, 49-39. Back-to-back baskets from Jordan McAllister gave the Dolphins a 53-39 lead. Two baskets from Chiles and a three from Turner got the Mavericks to within seven, 53-46, with 13:54 left.
A Conroy three with 11:38 remaining made it 56-49 in favor of Staten Island. The Dolphins answered back with a 20-5 run to take their largest lead of the game, 76-54, with 6:51 left in the game. The Mavericks continued to battle and later cut the Staten Island lead to 11, 89-78, with 1:13 left after a Chiles free throw. The Dolphins would go 7-of-8 from the foul line in the final minute of play to earn the 96-81 win.
Mercy shot 45.7 percent (32-of-70) from the floor, 48.0 percent (12-of-25) from downtown and 41.7 percent (5-of-12) from the foul line. Staten Island shot 45.1 percent (32-of-71) from the field, 51.9 percent (14-of-27) from beyond the arc and 81.8 percent (18-of-22) from the charity stripe. Staten Island held a 39-28 edge on the glass.
Head Coach Chris Watts and the Mavericks resume action on Saturday, January 27th when they host District of Columbia at 2 p.m.
