THROGGS NECK, NY – For the first time since the 2019-20 season, the Maritime College men's basketball team is on a three-game winning streak. The Privateers' third straight win, and fifth in their last six games, came in dominant fashion on Saturday afternoon, as Maritime (8-7, 4-2 Skyline) ended the first half on a 26-4 run to build a 21-point halftime lead en route to a 90-71 triumph over St. Joseph's Brooklyn (4-11, 1-5 Skyline).
The Privateers scored the first six points of the game and led 9-3 before the Bears rallied to take a 16-15 lead midway through the first half. However, Maritime would hold St. Joseph's Brooklyn without a field goal for the next six minutes, outscoring the Bears 15-4 during that span to build a 30-20 cushion.
After Joe Sheehan's bucket at the 4:01 mark stopped the St. Joseph's Brooklyn scoring drought, the Privateers would hold the Bears scoreless for the remainder of the period.
Ryan Donovan (North Salem, NY) made it a 19-point game, 39-20, with 55 seconds in the half, then
Jake Murphy's (Rockville Centre, NY) jumper just before the horn sounded extended the margin to 21 points, 41-20, at intermission.
Each of Maritime's first three baskets in the second half were three-pointers, as the Privateers quickly increased their advantage to 28 points, 50-22. The lead reached a game-high 33 points when
Jovan Germain's (Brooklyn, NY) trey at the 9:45 mark made it 69-36. It remained a comfortable margin the rest of the way, as Maritime earned its third straight victory, 90-71.
Donovan had a game-high 21 points in just 24 minutes of action. He also tallied six rebounds and four assists.
Chris Zaveckas (Merrick, NY) played eight minutes off the bench and sank four three-pointers, finishing with 14 points.
Theo Noble (Bronx, NY) contributed eight points, while
Robbie Mitchell (Staten Island, NY) and Germain each chipped in seven points.
Tyler Anderson (Smithtown, NY) handed out five assists, and
Aleksandar Begovic (Kotor, Montengro) grabbed 11 rebounds to go along with four steals.
One game after sinking 13 three-point shots as a team, the Privateers drained a program-record 14 treys on Saturday, going a combined 14-for-33 (42.4 percent) from downtown.
Jack Baron (Bayport, NY) hit the record-breaker with 28 seconds left in the game. Maritime shot 47.3 percent (35-of-74) from the field and 66.7 percent (6-of-9) at the charity stripe. The Privateers also had season-highs in assists (24) and steals (14), while outrebounding the Bears 45-32.
Evan Sirakis paced St. Joseph's Brooklyn with 18 points. Chris Williams added 11 points, three assists and four steals, while Jalen Gist posted 10 points off the bench. Adam Jasaraj, meanwhile, tallied eight points, 11 rebounds, five assists and three steals for the Bears. As a team, St. Joseph's Brooklyn shot 43.8 percent (28-of-64) from the floor, 34.8 percent (8-of-23) from long range, and 87.5 percent (7-of-8) at the free throw line.
Maritime is currently in a three-way tie with Manhattanville and Merchant Marine for first place in the Skyline Conference's North Division. The Privateers visit Farmingdale (10-5, 5-1 Skyline), the South Division leaders, at 7 p.m. on Tuesday.
