THROGGS NECK, N.Y. – Juniors Patrick MacDonald (Buffalo, N.Y./Canisius) and John Liccese (Bronx, N.Y./Cardinal Spellman) combined for 38 points, but their efforts were not enough to push the Maritime basketball team past the College of New Rochelle Blue Angels in non-conference action Tuesday evening at the Riesenberg Hall Gymnasium.

MacDonald led all scorers with 23 points in the contest, shooting .625 from the field and 3-for-4 from the free throw line while also pulling in 16 boards and 2 blocks, good for his second consecutive double double and eighth of the season. Liccese added 15 points and also added eight rebounds, and Tim Hoch (Coventry, R.I./Fishers Island (N.Y.)) finished just short of a double double, contributing 10 points and nine rebounds.

Three turnovers in the first minute of play deferred Maritime's first scoring opportunities, but MacDonald opened up the scoring for the contest with a dunk off a feed from Liccese. After trading a few buckets up and down the court, Hoch and senior Brendon Halligan (Durham, N.Y./Cairo-Durham) drained back to back three-point shots to create an 11-8 Privateer lead. Maritime and New Rochelle kept the game close and would continue to exchange baskets over much of the early half, but New Rochelle's Glen O'Loughlin netted two consecutive field goals to extend the Blue Angel lead to 17-13. Maritime looked to get the ball rolling after a called time out, but the Privateers were not able to catch the Blue Angels for the remainder of the half, struggling to find the shooting touch behind the arc, shooting only 21 percent as a team by the halftime break.

New Rochelle never let up in the second half and kept up their solid defense, but Maritime netted their first bucket of the second half at the 17:17 mark off the fingertips of MacDonald. The Privateers gained momentum and threatened midway through the second half, going on a 6-0 run that spanned nearly three minutes, causing New Rochelle to call a time out. Liccese then nailed a clutch triple at the 11:25 mark, cutting the Blue Angel lead to just eight points, their smallest lead of the second half. New Rochelle would then make their final push on the Privateers who continued to struggle on the offensive end much of the half, shooting just 27 percent as a team in the final frame.

Defensively, Maritime caused 14 Blue Angel turnovers on the night. Hoch concluded with three steals in the loss, a season-best.

With the loss, Maritime falls to 6-8 overall, and currently stands at 2-4 in Skyline Conference play, while the College of New Rochelle improves to 7-9 overall, and 2-1 in Hudson Valley Intercollegiate Athletic Conference action.

The Privateers return to action on the road when they travel to St. Joseph's (LI) for a Skyline Conference matchup. Tip-off for that contest is scheduled for 7:00 P.M. at the Danzi Athletic Center on the Campus of Saint Joseph's College.