Riverdale, N.Y. – The College of Mount Saint Vincent Men's Basketball team won its second straight home game on Thursday night with a 78-66 triumph over visiting Sage. Junior Shaquille Cunningham (Brooklyn, N.Y.) paced the offensive attack with a team-high 17 points.
Despite trailing for much of the first half on Thursday, the Dolphins rallied from nine down with 4:36 left in the first half to take a 35-34 lead into halftime. The Mount closed the period on a 12-2 run capped by a three-pointer from Stephen Oliver (Brooklyn, N.Y.) and a tip-in from Kevin Henry (Yonkers, N.Y.) with 46 ticks left.
Although the Dolphins converted just 40-percent from the free-throw line in the first half, they shot 43.8-percent from the floor as a team and 42.9-percent from behind the arc. Oliver paced the attack with three triples and 10 points in the opening stanza.
The two teams would trade buckets early in the second half and a three-point play from Matt Farbotko knotted the score at 39-39 with 18:13 left to play in regulation time. The Gators would take their first of three leads in the frame just under a minute later on a Michael Gallagher free-throw.
The two teams would trade spurts in the middle part of the second half and Jacob Sopchak came off the bench to push the Gators in front by a score of 51-50 with just under nine minutes left. The lead would be the last of the night for the visitors.
Trailing by the one point, the Mount ran off eight straight points to pull in front by seven keyed by back-to-back triples from Sean Caputo (Staten Island, N.Y.). The lead would grow to double-figures for the first time of the night after a Chris Bonaventura (Staten Island, N.Y.) three-pointer with 4:10 left.
Sage would get as close as six points in the last half minute, but the Dolphins would convert six straight free-throws to expand the lead to a game-high and final 12 points. Oliver tallied four straight from the line for the Dolphins to help secure the victory.
Mount Saint Vincent struggled from the charity stripe for much of the night and shot just 59.3-percent from the line. The team shot 43.1-percent from the floor overall and went 6-for-17 from behind the arc.
Cunningham finished the night 7-for-16 from the floor on his way to the team-high point total and also hauled in six rebounds and led the team with four assists. He also recorded a block and a steal.
Cody Gauvard (Rockaway, N.Y.) posted a double-double for the Mount with 13 points and a game-high 11 rebounds. He finished the night 6-for-13 from the floor. Bonaventura netted 11 points, including his key three-pointer, and swiped a pair of steals.
Oliver continued his hot shooting with three more treys on his way to 14 points. Over the last three games he has gone 11-for-19 from behind the arc and is leading the team by shooting 43.2-percent on the year from long distance.
The Mount defense had a strong night and forced 22 Sage turnovers, leading to 27 points on miscues. The Dolphins' bench also had a productive night, outscoring its opponents 42-12.
The Gators showed three players in double-figures and were led by a game-high 22 points from Matt Farbotko who also led the team with 10 rebounds. Mason Horne netted 12 points and Michael Gallagher finished with 11. Pat Lanoue paced the Gators with a game-high seven assists.
The win moves Mount Saint Vincent to 5-11 overall on the season and to 3-6 in Skyline Conference play. The Dolphins will look for back-to-back league wins when they host Maritime on January 25. Tip-off at the Sharp Center is scheduled for 7:00 p.m.