WORCESTER, MASS. (Dec. 30, 2016) – The Molloy men's basketball team edged ahead of the Assumption College Greyhounds 70-68 on Friday (Dec. 30). The Lions were led by 16 points from senior guard Charlie Marquardt (Rockaway Beach, N.Y.).  The maroon and white extend their winning streak to four games and improve to 7-6 on the season, while Assumption dropped to 2-10 with the loss.

Marquardt, junior Shandy Casimir (Middletown, N.Y.), and senior Jaylen Morris (Amherst, N.Y.) got the Lions off to an early 9-1 lead in the opening five minutes of action. The senior guards combined for 11 points to give Molloy their largest lead of the half, as the Lions led 26-18 with seven minutes remaining in the opening frame. The Greyhounds rallied to within three points, but a layup from senior Mike Guzzardi (Mount Sinai, N.Y.) put the maroon and white back up 30-25. In the final two minutes of the half, Assumption scored seven points to go up 32-30 with 13 seconds on the clock. A jumper at the last second from freshman Nick Corbett (Staten Island, N.Y.) sent the teams into the break deadlocked at 32-32.

The second half opened with the score being tied three times in the first five minutes. From there, each team sunk shots but neither was able to hold a lead for very long. Consecutive layups from Corbett, Morris, and Marquardt provided the Lions with a seven-point, 54-47 lead with just over nine minutes left to play. The Greyhounds consistently converted on foul shot opportunities, which enabled them to chip Molloy's lead down to just three points with 3:56 on the clock. The maroon and white, however, pulled away and seemed to have sealed the game on a dunk from Guzzardi with 68 seconds left to go up 66-59.

The Greyhounds kept coming, though, and foul shots from Patrick Fleming (Dobbs Ferry, N.Y.) and a three-pointer from Marcus Murray (Washington, D.C.) cut the deficit to just four points with 40 seconds on the clock. Forced to foul, Marquardt and Corbett were both sent to the line; both Lions made both of their shots to put Molloy up 70-62. Assumption received final second three-pointers from Murray and Justin Tuckson (Stafford, Va.) to make the score 70-68, but in the end Molloy would walk away with the victory.

Marquardt went 7-of-17 from the field and picked up three assists. The Lions also saw complete efforts from Guzzardi, Morris, and Corbett, who all totaled double-digit scoring totals. Guzzardi posted 16 points, going 8-of-13 from the floor, and added eight rebounds, one assist, and one block. Morris also pulled down eight boards coupled with 14 points, three assists and a game-leading two blocks. Corbett scored 12 points, including going a perfect 4-of-4 from the charity stripe, to go with three assists and three steals. For Assumption, Murray led all scorers with a game-high 19 points.

The Lions will return to the court in 2017 as they head to Old Westbury, N.Y. for an in-conference matchup with the Bears of New York Institute of Technology. The teams are scheduled to tip-off at 7:00 p.m.