THROGGS NECK, NY – The Maritime College men's basketball team jumped out to a 21-3 lead and never looked back against Purchase on Wednesday night. The Privateers (13-5, 9-0 Skyline) didn't trail in the game, as they earned their eighth straight victory, 70-52 over the Panthers (9-9, 5-4 Skyline) at Riesenberg Gymnasium.
Maritime scored the first nine points of the contest on treys by
Jake Devaney (Washingtonville, NY),
Jake Murphy (Rockville Centre, NY) and
Theo Noble (Bronx, NY), prompting a quick Purchase timeout. The Privateers held the Panthers without a field goal for nearly 11 minutes until Trey Skeete's layup cut Maritime's edge to 21-5 at the 9:09 mark. After Purchase got within 26-13, layups by Devaney and Noble pushed the margin back to 17 points, 30-13. The Panthers ended the first half on an 8-2 run, though, to trim their deficit to 32-21 at the break.
Purchase then started the second half on an 11-4 rally to make it a four-point game, 36-32. The Privateers still led by four, 44-40, when Murphy drove for a layup to spark an 11-0 spurt that extended the cushion to 15 points, 55-40. Maritime opened up its largest advantage of the night when a pair of Devaney free throws made it 65-46 with 4:17 remaining.
Chris Zaveckas (Merrick, NY) nailed a late three-pointer to cap the scoring in the 70-52 triumph that extended the Privateers' winning streak to eight.
For the second time this season, two Maritime players posted double-doubles in the same game. Devaney finished with 24 points and 10 rebounds while also recording a career-high six blocks. He added three steals.
Amadou Kouyate (Harlem, NY), meanwhile, had his first career double-double with 12 points and a career-best 13 boards. Murphy
tallied 19 points, and Noble
contributed seven points to go along with four steals.
James O'Connell (East Williston, NY) distributed five assists in his first collegiate start, while
Evan Block (Seaford, NY) pulled down nine rebounds. The Privateers shot 41.4 percent (29-of-70) from the floor and held a 49-37 edge on the glass. Maritime went 7-for-24 (29.2 percent) from long range and 5-for-14 (35.7 percent) at the charity stripe.
Desmond Ward paced the Panthers with 14 points off the bench. Rashid Nikiema notched 12 points and six rebounds, and Gabe Bristow chipped in nine points. Matthew Phillips and Skeete secured six boards apiece for Purchase, which shot a combined 31.6 percent (18-of-57) from the field. The Panthers were 8-for-24 (33.3 percent) from downtown and 8-for-14 (57.1 percent) at the free throw line.
With the win, the Privateers completed an undefeated January, finishing the month a perfect 8-0. Maritime, which is in first place in the Skyline Conference's Black Division, hosts Gold Division-leading Sarah Lawrence (12-6, 8-1 Skyline) at 1 p.m. on Saturday.
