THROGGS NECK, NY - The Maritime College men's basketball team's season came to a close in heart-breaking fashion on Saturday afternoon as they fell to the United States Merchant Marine Academy 85-80. The game was win or go home for the Privateers as the victory would have pushed them into their first playoff appearance since the 2009-10 season, but after a hard-fought 40 minutes they couldn't come out on top.

Prior to the start of the crucial Skyline Conference matchup, Maritime honored it's two graduation members of the team, manager Ahdiyah Robey and senior guard Brendan McGovern (Seaford, N.Y./St. John the Baptist). McGovern will end his career with 1,261 points, good enough for 6th all-time in program history.

After the senior day ceremony, McGovern and the Privateers came out hot on offense as he drained his first three shots from behind the arc. Maritime went on to put up 16 points in the first five minutes of action, but the Mariners were able to keep the score within reach. Later in the half, back-to-back three-point shots from USMMA tied up the score at 22-22 with nine minutes to go in the half.

With five minutes left in the first half, the Privateers caught fire once again and were able to extend their lead at halftime. A three-point shot in transition from Mike Regan (Dix Hills, N.Y./St. Anthony's) got the momentum going and then back-to-back layups by Griffin McNally (Huntington Station, N.Y./Walt Whitman) pushed the lead to seven points. After a Brennan Whelan (Northport, N.Y./Northport) jumper in the paint, Maritime held on to a nine-point lead going into the locker rooms.

Whelan kept the Maritime offense rolling in the second half as he knocked down his first three, three-point shot attempts to help the Privateers reach a double-digit advantage. With eight minutes to go in the game, a fastbreak dunk from Jaylin Gray (Brooklyn, NY/Nazareth) that pushed the lead to 70-58 appeared to give them the momentum they needed to close out the game. However, the Mariners came roaring back as they went on a 15-4 run late in the game to take their first lead at 79-78. Maritime ended up with multiple good looks from three-point range down the stretch, but couldn't find the bottom of the net and ultimately fell 85-80.

Whelan had a career day for Maritime as he finished with 29 points and 12 assists for a double-double. McGovern turned in a solid senior day performance with 16 points, while Gray chipped in 17 of his own. The Privateers finished the season with a 10-15 record and 6-10 in conference action.