Dec. 2, 2011

NEW YORK, N.Y. - George Nimmons' layup with time expiring in regulation stunned the Hunter Homecoming crowd and gave the visiting Lightning a dramatic last second win on Friday night as Lehman defeated the Hawks 62-60.

Behind for the entire game until two free throws by Nimmons put Lehman ahead 57-56, the Lightning built a four point lead with 2:09 remaining only to have Hunter tie the contest at 60 on two jumpers by Panagio Koutsoloukas.  Following a missed three pointer by Nimmons, the Hawks called time out.  However, out of the stoppage the Lightning junior came up with a turnover by Joel Cerda that led to the game-winning bucket.

For the Lightning, Mathias Raggiotto continued his strong play with 16 points and six rebounds, while sharpshooter Kelvin Gil added 15 points.

Hunter outshot the Lightning on the evening, knocking down 43 percent of its shots to 32 percent for Lehman, but the Hawks were forced into 23 turnovers to just 14 for Lehman, including the crucial miscue by Cerda at the end of the game.

After a close first half that had Lehman trailing by only one point, 31-30, the Hawks managed to pump its lead up to as many as 13 with 9:19 remaining in the second half before the Lightning comeback.

With the win Lehman improves to an impressive 5-1 overall and 2-0 in the City University of New York Athletic Conference.