THROGGS NECK, NY – On Wednesday night, the Maritime College men's basketball team played a home game for the first time since Feb. 22, 2020. And the Privateers treated their fans to a thrilling victory. Maritime (1-1) rallied from a six-point deficit with 6:06 remaining to earn a 78-74 victory over John Jay (1-4) at Riesenberg Gymnasium.
After John Jay opened up a 66-60 advantage, the Privateers responded with an 11-0 run to take the lead for good.
Ryan Donovan's (North Salem, NY) trey at the 4:32 mark put Maritime in front 67-66, and another Donovan three with 2:31 left extended the margin to five points, 71-66.
It was 77-71 in favor of the Privateers when John Jay's Garrison Watkins scored three straight points to make it a one-possession game. However, Watkins missed a trey with five seconds left and
Mike Regan (Dix Hills, NY) grabbed the rebound for Maritime. He was immediately fouled and drained one of two free throws to seal the win.
Jaylin Gray (Brooklyn, NY) paced the Privateers with 21 points, and he also distributed four assists. Donovan
contributed 12 points, while
Griffin McNally (Huntington Station, NY) and
Robbie Mitchell (Richmond, NY) tallied 11 points apiece.
Nick Ovanessian (Bayside, NY) added seven points to go along with a game-high 12 rebounds. Maritime shot 50.9 percent (27-of-53) from the floor, 45.5 percent (5-of-11) from long range, and 59.4 percent (19-of-32) at the free throw line.
There were eight ties and six lead changes in the contest, as neither side held an advantage of more than eight all night. Maritime scored the first four points of the game and was in front for most of the first half. After John Jay tied it at 21-21 with 6:01 remaining until halftime, a Donovan layup started a 7-0 Maritime run that gave the Privateers a 28-21 cushion. The Privateers opened up their largest lead of the game, an 33-25 edge with 53 seconds left in the first half, but the Bloodhounds ended the period on a 5-0 spurt to trim the margin to three, 33-30, at intermission.
John Jay tied the score on its first possession of the second half, and eventually built a five-point cushion, 46-41, barely five minutes into the period. The Privateers rallied with a 7-2 rally to tie it at 48-48, with 13:01 to go. The score was still knotted, 58-58, when the Bloodhounds went on an 8-2 run to open up the 66-60 lead, their largest of the contest.
Angel Rivera had a double-double for John Jay, finishing with 14 points and 10 rebounds. He also recorded three blocks. Bleron Lata posted 13 points, while Watkins contributed 11 points and four assists. Frankie Barbato tallied 10 points off the bench for the Bloodhounds, who shot 43.9 percent (29-of-66) as a team. John Jay went 7-for-25 (28 percent) from downtown and 9-for-15 (60 percent) at the charity stripe.
Maritime returns to action on Saturday, when CCNY (3-2) visits Riesenberg Gymnasium for a 1 p.m. matchup.
