Men's Basketball Falls Short in OT Thriller to USMMA

When and Where:

January 25, 2023 - Kings Point, NY

Records:

St. Joseph's (L.I.), 9-8, 6-3 Skyline

USMMA- 9-9, 7-2 Skyline 

Results:

The St. Joseph's University, New York (L.I.) men's basketball team fell short to United States Merchant Marine Academy, 75-72 in a Skyline Conference matchup on Wednesday evening.

Top performers:

• Sophomore Alec Tabada led the Golden Eagles in scoring with 20 points on a perfect 7-7 shooting from the field while also grabbing seven rebounds 

• Junior Spencer Malloy came away with a team-leading 10 boards, tying a team-high with three assists, and scored 14 points 

• Junior Xavier Allen finished 12 points with seven rebounds and one steal 

• Senior Jake Gaudiello recorded 11 points, tied a team-high three assists, and a team-leading two steals

• Graduate Matthew Hirdt also chipped in 10 points with a team-high two three-point field goals made

• Kody Robinson led the Mariners in scoring with 22 points, shooting 5-8 from three-point range 

• Bryce Bristow also chipped in for USMMA, finishing with 20 points, with a game-high 13 rebounds, four steals, and one block

How it happened:

• The Golden Eagles started the game off strong, building a 13-0 lead, led by Guadiello scoring nine of the 13 points 

• USMMA would score their first basket a little over the halfway mark of the first half, which would propel the team to go on a 10-0 run to cut the lead to three at the 8:14 mark

• SJLI would end up on top at the end of the first half with a six-point lead, 26-20

• The second half saw both teams exchanging buckets, with St. Joseph's holding the lead until the 2:54 mark of the second half when a three-pointer by Jake Hatch tied the game

• A layup from Bristow gave the Mariners their first lead of the second half 

• Tabada would be fouled after scoring a layup of his own, converting the and-one opportunity and giving St. Joseph's a one-point lead with 30 seconds remaining 

• Robinson would go 1-2 from the free throw line after drawing the foul from Malloy, sending the game into overtime 

• Merchant Marine would pull away in the final minutes of overtime with Robinson finding a lane to the hoop giving the Mariners a four-point lead and solidifying the 75-72 victory

Notes:

• St. Joseph's shot 45.9% from the field while holding USMMA to 40.6%

• The Mariners held a 42-38 rebounding edge over SJLI

• The Golden Eagles provided 23 points off the bench compared to Merchant Marine's 12

• USMMA recorded five steals compared to SJLI's three 

Next up, the Golden Eagles return to the Danzi Center to host SUNY Maritime for a Skyline Conference match-up on Saturday, January 28, at 1:00 pm.