Box Score CALDWELL, N.J. (Nov. 19, 2014) - The Molloy College men's basketball team traveled to the Garden State to take on non-conference opponent Caldwell University on Wednesday evening. Despite another strong offensive outing from the Lions led by junior guard
Brandon Williams (Baldwin, N.Y.), Molloy fell to the Cougars, 80-77 at the George R. Newman Center. With the win, the Cougars improved to 2-1 overall, while the Lions dropped to 2-1 on the young season.
The Lions shot 40.6% from field goal range for the game, while sinking 15 three-pointers (out of 36 attempts for a conversion rate of 41.7%).
Caldwell jumped out to an early 15-point lead with just five minutes elapse in the opening stanza. Their highwater-mark for the first half came at the 9:23 mark when Caldwell led, 33-14. The Lions aimed to head into the locker room with a much smaller deficit and they were able to achieve that. The Lions reeled off a 16-6 run to trim Caldwell's lead to 39-30. Trading baskets on either side of the court, the two teams headed into halftime with the score 44-40 in favor of Caldwell. Molloy sophomore guard
Jaylen Morris (Amherst, N.Y.) drained a three-pointer with 1:05 left to propel the Lions to the 40-point mark and cut their deficit to the lowest of the first half.
Molloy came firing out of the intermission to take a one-point lead. Senior guard
Matt McLeod (Greenlawn, N.Y.) sunk a three-ball, which was followed up by two successful foul shots from sophomore forward
Charlie Marquardt (Rockaway Beach, N.Y.). For the majority of the period, Caldwell led, and usually by 6-9 points. The Lions kept battling and when the 2:27 mark came around, Morris powered in a lay-up to tie the score at 74-74.
Junior
Kevin Bowles (Wantagh, N.Y.) then hit a three-pointer to put Molloy up, 77-74. Caldwell grabbed two of those points back off free throws. A lay-up and a pair of made free throws over the final 40 seconds of the contest sealed the win for the Cougars.
For Molloy, Williams led the team with 22 points, including four three-balls, while Bowles scored 17 points and had five treys go in. Morris contributed 14 points, while McLeod added 13 points and eight rebounds. Williams and McLeod each dished out six assists.
Head Coach
Charles Marquardt and the Lions return to the hardwood on Saturday, Nov. 22 when they take on Concordia College in the LIU Post Thanksgiving Classic in Brookville, N.Y. Game time is set for 1 p.m. LiveStats and an audio/video broadcast will be available right here on MolloyLions.com.
