MEN'S BASKETBALL DROPS ANOTHER HARD-FOUGHT GAME AGAINST MERCY, 69-67

COLLEGE OF STATEN ISLAND ATHLETICS

MEN'S BASKETBALL DROPS ANOTHER HARD-FOUGHT GAME AGAINST MERCY, 69-67

11/30/2022 11:00:00 PM

Staten Island, NY - The College of Staten Island Men's Basketball Team dropped another hard-fought game this evening as they lost their conference opener to the Mercy College Mavericks by a final score of 69-67. The Dolphins are now 1-5 following the defeat, 0-1 against the East Coast Conference. The Mavericks improve to 2-4 with the win and begin 1-0 against the ECC.

The Dolphins shot the ball extremely well to open the game and their first five baskets of the game all came on three-point attempts. Of the five threes, one belonged to JJ Chestnut, one belonged to David Shkolniy, and three belonged to Luis Armas. Behind those five triples, the Dolphins led by seven, 15-8, less than five minutes into the first half. With just under ten minutes to play in the half, the Dolphins extended the lead to double-digits for the first time, and behind an 11-4 run, CSI took an 18-point lead, their largest of the game. However, the Dolphins would not score again for the remainder of the first half and the Mavericks would pull to within seven heading into halftime.

After a lackluster finish to the first half, the Dolphins offense got back on track to begin the second half. Messiah Mallory opened the half with an and-one layup before adding the free throw to put the Dolphins back ahead by ten. Nine minutes later, the Dolphins lead reached 13 points, but from there the Mavericks would begin their comeback. Two baskets by James Taylor Jr. and five free-throws by Garrett Kirkland quickly cut the lead all the way down to a pair with 6:24 remaining. The Dolphins snapped the scoring run on a free throw, and consecutive makes put CSI back ahead by five. The Mavericks responded with a 5-0 run to tie the score, and after the Dolphins regained a two-point lead, Mercy tied the score again with just over one minute to play. Neither team would score again until the final ten seconds when Sean Smith Jr. finished an incredibly tough shot in close over stifling CSI defense. Chris Velasquez then drew a foul with 1.5 seconds remaining, but could not hit the two free throws CSI needed to tie the score.

The Dolphins were led in scoring by JJ Chestnut who gave CSI a strong two-way effort in the game delivering at both ends of the floor. Velasquez gave the Dolphins a third straight strong performance as well finishing with 13 points, his second double-digit scoring effort in the last three games. Mallory added another double-double with 12 points and 11 rebounds. After hitting his first three shots in the opening quarter, Armas finished with 10 points as the last of CSI's four double-digit scorers. Michael Oyekanmi was solid off the CSI bench finishing with 9 points and 8 rebounds in 26 minutes. For the Mavericks Taylor Jr. was the driving force behind their comeback as he scored 20. Sean Smith Jr. was also key in the come-from-behind victory as he finished with 13 points, two coming on the game-winner.

The Dolphins will get another chance to pick up their first conference win on Saturday when they take on St. Thomas Aquinas College. The Dolphins will travel to Sparkill to face the Spartans this Saturday at 3 PM.

Gallery: (11-30-2022) Men's Basketball vs Mercy

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