Box Score

THROGGS NECK, N.Y. – The Maritime Men's Basketball team opened up the 2014-15 season with a loss in the team's first matchup at the 2014 Admiral's Classic at Riesenberg Hall Gym on Saturday afternoon as Maritime fell to the Hunter Hawks by a score of 66-58.
 
Leading the way for Maritime in terms of points was senior T'Vaughn Gibson (Freeport, Bahamas/Sunland Baptist Academy), who finished the game with 11 points. Freshman John Liccesse had a solid collegiate debut with 10 points and also pulled down five boards. Senior Sean Corley (Harlem, N.Y./Thurgood Marshall Academy) fell just one point shy of a double-double as he led the team with 10 rebounds and also led with six assists. Corley also led the Privateers with five steals on the afternoon.
 
The Privateers jumped out to a quick 2-0 lead as it was Corley to raise the curtain on scoring for Maritime with a layup. Sophomore Brendon Halligan (Durham, N.Y./Cairo-Durham) added to the lead with a three-point basket before Hunter responded with a layup of its own. After a scoring drought for both teams, Gibson came in and drilled a three-pointer to increase Maritime's lead to six, he then sank another to give the Privateers an 11-2 lead.
 
Hunter chipped away at the deficit and eventually tied the game at 15 with 7:56 left in the opening half. The Hawks then took their first lead on their next possession ahead of a freshman Kevin Blessington (Lynbrook, N.Y./East Rockaway) jumper to tie the game at 17. Hunter led through the remainder of the half, and took a five-point lead into the halftime break.
 
After the intermission, Hunter sank three quick baskets to balloon its lead up to 11 points. The lead swelled all the way up to 15 points halfway through the second period with Hunter taking a 50-35 advantage.
 
Sophomore Bobby Parlow (Bay Head, N.J./Point Pleasant Beach) sank both of his shots at the line, to begin Maritime's fight back into the game. Liccesse also dropped a pair of free throws with just over nine minutes to go to pull the Privateers within 12. Sophomore Isaiah Hayes (Jamaica, N.Y./Queens Teaching) put up a layup followed by Halligan dropping a three-pointer as Maritime put together a 9-1 run.
 
The Privateers continued to hang close with the Hawks through the waning minutes of the period, and pulled within five after a layup by Hayes and then another from Liccesse to pull within three at 61-58 with just over 30 seconds to go in the game.
 
Maritime tried to force Hunter to miss its free throws but the Hawks closed out the contest hitting 5-of-6 free throws to seal the eight-point victory.
 
Team stats were relatively close, as the Privateers and Hawks both had 30 points from the paint and Hunter also had eight second-chance points, to Maritime's seven. Points off of turnovers were well in favor of Maritime as they led by a 26-19 margin in that category. However, the difference in the game proved to be free throw shooting as the Privateers hit just nine of 26 from the stripe, while Hunter sank 24-of-40 from the line.
 
Earlier in the day, St. Joseph's (Brooklyn) defeated Merchant Marine by the score of 63-47 to open up the 2014 Admiral's Classic.
 
Maritime (0-1) will resume play tomorrow at the Admiral's Classic when the Privateers play host to the St. Joseph's (Brooklyn) Bears at 3 p.m. tomorrow from Riesenberg Hall Gymnasium. Hunter (1-0) will open up the day with a 1 p.m. tip-off against Merchant Marine.