Box Score ROCHESTER, N.Y. (Jan. 23, 2016) – A 28-point effort from junior guard Charlie Marquardt (Rockaway Beach, N.Y.) and a near triple-double from fellow junior Jaylen Morris (Amherst, N.Y.) propelled the Molloy College men's basketball team to a wire-to-wire 76-59 win over Roberts Wesleyan on Saturday (Jan. 23) at the Voller Athletic Center. The Lions snapped a four-game losing skid and now hold a record of 5-13 overall and 3-7 in conference competition while Roberts Wesleyan falls to 5-11, with a 2-8 mark in ECC play.
Both sides struggled to shoot the ball early in the contest, with two free throws by Morris and a jumper by senior guard Brandon Williams (Baldwin, N.Y.) staking the maroon and white out to a 4-1 lead with about three minutes gone by in the first half. The Baldwin native would hit a lay-up right after Marquardt buried a three-point shot as the Lions raced into the catbird seat with a 9-3 advantage over Roberts with 16:10 to play in the opening period. It took the Redhawks a few minutes, but freshman guard Zack Panebianco (Jamestown, N.Y.) connected on a three that brought his side within two points at 9-7 with six minutes gone by in the frame. Lay-ups by Morris and Marquardt upped the Lions' lead to six points at 14-8 with 12:39 to play in the first half as both teams continued to have difficulties shooting the basketball. To this point in the contest, Roberts was just 18.2% from the field while Molloy hit 33.3% of its field goals through the opening eight minutes of play.
The cold spell continued on both sides, but the maroon and white were able to press forward thanks to an effective presence from the free throw line. Specifically, Marquardt went 3-for-3 in the opening ten minutes of play from the charity stripe to compliment the 2-of-2 performance from Morris in the opening portion of the contest. The Redhawks finally got out of the scoring funk when senior guard Tyrel Dixon (Tobyhanna, Pa.) hit a jumper with 9:15 left in the first half. Seemingly, the shot woke both squads up as Morris buried a three-pointer immediately afterwards while sophomore forward Malik Dare (Cohoes, N.Y.) had the response at the other end of the floor. The Lions' lead was nine at 21-12 with seven-and-a-half minutes left in the first half of action, and Morris increased the advantage to 11 with another lay-up seconds later. The junior guard from Amherst drove through for another lay-up to force Roberts Head Coach Rob McCoy to call a timeout with 6:57 to play, as the Lions extended the edge to 13 at 25-12. The lead stayed at 13 as freshman guard Curtis Jenkins (Farmingdale, N.Y.) hit a driving runner in the paint and a free throw surrounding a three-ball by freshman Quinn Carey (Ponte Vedra, Fla.). Molloy kept pushing forward, with Marquardt scorching a jumper to put the Lions ahead, 30-17, with five minutes left. The lead would continue to swell as Marquardt and Morris wreaked havoc on the Roberts defense, scoring 29 of the Lions' 44 points in grabbing a 14-point lead at the halftime break.
Holding a 44-30 lead as the second half got underway, Molloy continued to roll as Jenkins struck for a trey to give his side a 47-32 lead just two minutes into the final act of regulation. Marquardt continued his impeccable shooting streak with yet another three-pointer at the 16:41 mark of the second half that put the maroon and white in front by 19 points at 56-37. The Lions continued the offensive assault on Rochester, while defensively Morris was putting on a clinic and impersonating basketball great Dikembe Mutombo by swatting away any shots of the Redhawks. The junior guard rejected Panebianco's lay-up attempt with 16:04 to play for his sixth block, tying the Molloy single-game record for blocks set by Tyler Hammett back in 2013. Around the same time, Jenkins started heating up from the field by nailing a jumper with 11 minutes to play to keep the Lions ahead by 17 points at 62-45. The hosts never got close enough to make a serious charge, and Molloy went on cruise control in achieving the victory.
Marquardt tied his season-high with the 28-point effort in the win for the maroon and white, hitting 50% (9-18) of his field goal attempts while pulling down four rebounds. Morris had himself an afternoon, as well, with the six blocks along with 16 points and 17 rebounds while Jenkins poured in 21 points and seven boards. Molloy was dominant, never trailing throughout the contest, and shot a team percentage of 46% (29-63) from the field in torching Roberts Wesleyan's defense. Leading the Redhawks was senior guard Marcus Gooding (Brooklyn, N.Y.) who had 20 points while Dixon added a double-double (12 points, 11 rebounds). The home side's shooting woes contributed to the loss, as Rob McCoy's club hit just 33.9% (21-62) of its field goals and 45% (9-20) of its free throws.
Ten games into the 20-game conference slate, Molloy currently sits at 3-7 in ECC play which is good for ninth in the 11-team standings. The Lions begin the second half of conference season with a Wednesday night (Jan. 27) showcase versus Mercy College at Quealy Gymnasium.
