Manchester, N.H. – The Molloy men's basketball team went back-and-forth with the Hawks of Saint Anselm Saturday afternoon, but would fall, 97-92, inside Stoutenburgh Gymnasium. As a result, the Lions move to 0-4 on the campaign while the Hawks improve to 3-1.
 
How it Happened

• There wasn't much separation between the two teams in the opening 10 minutes as both teams stayed within one possession of each other.
• Through the next 2:29 of action, Saint Anselm put together a 9-2 run to give themselves breathing room, 32-23.
• The Hawks controlled the remainder of the opening stanza, building its lead to as much as 14 before taking an eight-point lead into halftime.
• Molloy began the second half shooting 60 percent from the floor en route to a 14-7 run. The run was paced by junior Chris Stokel and sophomore Dylan Kopp who combined for nine points to shrink the deficit to one, 61-60, at the under 16-minute media timeout.
• The Lions continued to keep it within one for the next six minutes before sophomore Joshua Malcolm made consecutive layups to push Molloy in front, 74-73, with 9:30 left to play.
• Saint Anselm put together a few defensive stops and built an eight-point lead, 88-80, over the next four minutes while holding the Lions to just three field goals and shooting 55 percent from the floor.
• The cardinal and white continued to fight back, putting together a mini 6-0 run that was capped by sophomore Sebastian Bosquez who hit a three-point basket in transition to shrink the lead to two, 88-86, with under four minutes to go.
• With 2:01 on the scoreboard, junior Bryce Merchant sank a three to keep the Lions within one possession, 91-89.
• Following a pair of free throws and a layup from the home team, Stokel converted from three-point range to shrink the contest to one possession, 95-92, with 53 seconds remaining.
• Saint Anselm would drain two more free throws and hold Molloy scoreless for the final seconds and go on to close the victory, 97-92.

Top Performances

• Stokel led the Lions offense netting 19 points and handing out six assists.
• Junior Jared Weakly collected 17 points shooting seven-of-seven from the field and three-of-three from three-point range while swiping three steals.
• Merchant added 16 points while tying a team-high five rebounds.
• Kopp and Bosquez rounded out the top scorers with 12 points each.

Up Next
The Lions wrap up its New Hampshire trip with a matinee matchup at Southern New Hampshire Sunday, November 23 beginning at 12:00 p.m.