Dobbs Ferry, N.Y. - The men's basketball team snapped a four-game losing streak this afternoon with a definitive 86-68 victory over the Mavericks of Mercy University from the Neil Judge Student Athlete Center. Molloy improves to 9-16 on the season and 5-9 in East Coast Conference play headed into the final week of the regular season while Mercy falls to 7-17 (6-9 ECC).
How it Happened
- The Lions got out to an early 12-3 lead that included four points from freshman Sebastian Bozques, three from junior Payton Shumpert and sophomore Rob Matos, and two from graduate student Matt Lane.
- A three-pointer from the Mavs snapped the run, but a dunk from Lane, three-pointer from Matos, and layup from freshman Dylan Kopp brought Molloy's lead to 13 with 12:23 left in the first half.
- The cardinal and white would lead by as many as 19 in the first half, 38-19 following a foul shot from Lane headed into the final 90 seconds of the half.
- Mercy ended the half with eight-straight points to come within 11, 38-27, at the break.
- The Lions responded by opening the second half with a seven-point run, but a 13-2 response from the home team cut the lead to just seven, 47-40.
- Mercy would make it a one possession game, 54-51, with 9:27 remaining in the contest, but a 15-7 run regained a double digit lead for the Lions, 69-58.
- The Mavs would come within eight, 70-62, headed into the final five minutes, but the Molloy offense put together a 16-point run, including 10 points from sophomore Bryce Merchant, to lead by 22 points and take the victory.
Top Performances
- Matos led all scorers with 23 points and added five assists.
- Merchant and Shumpert each tallied 16 points with Merchant adding a career-high 14 rebounds for a double-double.
- Lane led with 17 rebounds while adding nine points.
- Kopp (15) and Bosquez (7) rounded out the top scorers.
Up Next
Molloy's penultimate game of the 2024-25 season is slated for Wednesday (Feb. 26) against the College of Staten Island at 7:30 p.m. from Bob Houlihan Court in Rockville Centre.
