NEW YORK – The Maritime College men's basketball team returned to action for the first time in nearly two weeks on Friday night. In the opening game of the NYU Holiday Tournament, the Privateers (7-3) suffered an 81-51 loss to Oneonta (3-6) at the Paulson Center.
After
Tyler Anderson (Smithtown, NY) drained a three-pointer for the first basket of the game, Oneonta scored five straight points to take the lead. The Red Dragons eventually opened up a 12-5 cushion, but the Privateers responded with a 10-5 run to get back within two, 17-15, with 7:31 left in the first half. Oneonta outscored Maritime 18-8 over the remainder of the half, however, to take a 35-23 advantage into the locker room.
Oneonta extended the margin to 14 points, 37-23, early in the second half before the Privateers battled back within five, 41-36, at the 16:20 mark. The Red Dragons scored the next eight points, though, to push their lead back to 12 at 48-36. After Maritime again cut its deficit to seven, 48-41, Oneonta gradually pulled away for an 81-51 victory.
Jake Murphy (Rockville Centre, NY) finished with a team-best 14 points to go along with three assists.
Theo Noble (Bronx, NY) added 12 points and three steals, while
Aleksandar Begovic (Kotor, Montenegro) pulled down a game-high nine rebounds. He also distributed three assists. Anderson, meanwhile, posted seven points, three assists and two blocks. As a team, the Privateers shot 33.9 percent (19-of-56) from the floor, 28 percent (7-of-25) from long range, and 66.7 percent (6-of-9) at the free throw line.
Elijah Castillo led four Red Dragons in double-figures with 16 points. Xavier Hill notched 12 points and eight rebounds, and Daniel Penubothula contributed 12 points of his own. Caleb Brown tallied 11 points and five boards for Onenonta, which held a 39-31 edge on the glass. The Red Dragons were 30-for-59 (50.8 percent) from the field, 2-for-11 (18.2 percent) from downtown, and 19-for-23 (82.6 percent) at the charity stripe.
Maritime has a quick turnaround before Saturday's consolation game. The Privateers will take on SUNY Canton (4-9) at 1 p.m.
