KING'S POINT, N.Y. --- The due of senior Cameron Cullen and sophomore guard Matt Bosch helped the Moravian College men's basketball team hold off The United States Merchant Marine Academy for a 68-65 Landmark Conference road win Wednesday evening.
Cullen paced the Greyhounds with 18 points including the shot that put Moravian ahead for good with 1:12 to play, and he added six rebounds. Bosch added 16 points and a team-high seven boards, and Bosch was 10-for-13 at the foul line. The Greyhounds have struggled from the charity stripe recently but connected on 34-of-46 attempts (74 percent) against the Mariners.
Junior guard Izel Dickerson and senior guard Kenny Gula each netted nine points for Moravian while senior center Blake English added eight points and a pair of blocked shots to increase his school-record total to 159 career blocked shots.
USMMA had three players in doubles figures with Zach Karczewski leading the way with 19 points and 11 rebounds. Nick Sergio added 15 points and eight boards while Matthew Miller tossed in ten points.
Cullen opened the scoring for the Greyhounds with a jumper and after a pair of free throws by Dickerson pushed Moravian ahead 4-0, the Mariners netted their first points of the game. The Hounds pushed the lead into double digits, 13-2, on a three-pointer from Gula with just under 14 minutes left until the intermission.
English pushed the lead to 13 points, 15-2, at the 13-minute mark, and the Greyhounds were up 20-8 on a lay-up by Gula with just over 10 minutes until halftime. USMMA ran off seven straight points before junior forward Garrett Kashmer stopped the run with a three-pointer with 7:05 on the clock. The Mariners scored six of the next eight points to cut Moravian's advantage to 25-21 before Bosch hit a jumper and four free throws to put the Hounds' back up by 10 points, 31-21, with 2:28 left in the first half.
Moravian headed to the locker room with a 34-27 lead after shooting 10-for-26 from the floor, 3-for7 behind the three-point line and 11-for-16 at the foul line in the opening 20 minutes of action. The Greyhounds also committed just seven turnovers in the first half while forcing USMMA into 12 turnovers.
Bosch gave the Greyhounds a 37-27 advantage with a lay-up just a minute into the second half, and the Hounds were up 39-31 after two more free throws by Bosch. The Mariners then ran off 10 straight points to take a 41-39 lead on a pair of free throws by Sergio with 13:33 to play. Gula pulled the Greyhounds back into a tie at 43-43 before USMMA moved back in front.
The teams would trade baskets over the next few minutes before USMMA took a 53-47 on a three-pointer from Preston Padgett with 8:37 remaining. The Greyhounds tied the game again at 57-57 on a lay-up by Cullen, and after a timeout, Cullen hit a free throw to finish the three-point play and put Moravian back on top, 58-57, with 6:10 to go.
The squads continued to trade the lead over the next five minutes until Cullen hit the final go ahead lay-up with 1:12 remaining off of a pass from Bosch. With 15 seconds remaining, Bosch made two free throws to seal the victory for the Greyhounds. Moravian scored 23 of its 34 second-half points at the charity stripe as the Hounds went 23-for-30 at the foul line in the final 20 minutes.
Moravian will hit the court again on Saturday, January 25 when the Greyhounds welcome Susquehanna University to Johnston Hall for a Landmark Conference game tipping off at 2:00 p.m.