Box Score
PURCHASE, N.Y. – A game-changing 20-0 run midway through the second half proved too much of an obstacle for the Manhattanville men's basketball team to overcome on Tuesday night, as the Valiants fell to Hunter, 85-81, in both teams' 2011-12 opener at Kennedy Gymnasium.
Four Valiants reached double figures in scoring in a losing effort, as senior Trevoy Pointer (Dallas, Texas/Skyline) led the team with 15 while classmate Jeff Ventura (Fort Lauderdale, Fla./Cypress Bay) and sophomores Jack Bramswig (Pleasantville, N.Y./Pleasantville) and Colin Campbell (Miami, Fla./LaSalle) all chipped in 11 apiece. Senior Armani Blackmon (Plano, Texas/Plano East) was huge on the boards for Manhattanville as well, leading all players with 17 rebounds, the most in a game for the Valiants since John Danielski '04 hauled in 27 against Mount Saint Mary on February 26, 2004.
Four Hawks also scored at least 10 in the game as well, led by a game-high 19 from Mark Courtien and 18 from Jeffrey Daza. Joel Cerda also added 13 points and a game-high seven assists and five steals for the visitors in a good all-around effort.
The Valiants held a lead for most of the first half against the Hawks, growing their lead to as many as 11 with 5:54 remaining on a jumper from senior Jack Railton-Woodcock (Melbourne, Australia/Scotch College). Hunter did not go away, however, rattling off 10 straight points in a span of 100 seconds to get back within one at 30-29.
Nonetheless, Manhattanville stabilized offensively and went into the intermission with a six-point edge at 42-36. Campbell had all of his 11 points in the opening stanza to lead all players, while Blackmon single-handedly matched Hunter's entire team with 13 boards in the opening 20 minutes of play.
The Valiants maintained a multi-possession lead for the first six minutes of the second half, but things suddenly went sour for the home team soon after, as Hunter scored 20 straight points to take a 56-50 deficit and turn it into a 70-56 lead with 9:03 remaining in the contest. John Akinyemi had eight points for the visitors during the run, including a pair of free throws to cap the game-changing swing, while Manhattanville went 0-for-6 with seven turnovers.
Sophomore Chrys Malone (Springfield, Mass./High School of Science & Technology) mercifully put an end to the run with a three-pointer with 8:35 left, capping a period of nearly six minutes between Valiant field goals. The shot seemed to re-energize the home team, as the squad responded with a transition layup by senior Felipe Vargas (Miami, Fla./Miami Christian) and threes from Malone and senior Ivan Jovicic (Belgrade, Serbia/Sports HS Belgrade) to suddenly get right back within three with 6:33 on the clock.
The Valiants completed the comeback and knotted the score a few minutes later on a Ventura three-ball that made the score 76-76 with 2:59 to go, but Daza came right back down the court and nailed a dagger three to put the visitors back up by a trey. Manhattanville could not get any closer the rest of the way, as Hunter hit 4-of-6 free throws down the stretch to clinch the win.
Free-throw shooting was not a strength for Manhattanville on the game, which was a problem since that is what decided the final score. Both teams made 32 field goals on the night – Hunter in 65 attempts (49.2 percent) and Manhattanville in 62 (51.6 percent) – but Hunter hit 13 of 21 free throws while the Valiants struggled to hit only eight of 17 freebies.
Manhattanville (0-1) will remain at home this weekend, as the Valiants host the 35th annual Castle Classic on Friday and Saturday. The team's first game of the weekend comes on Friday night at 8 p.m. when the Valiants host St. John Fisher at Kennedy Gym. Hunter (1-0) will take on Adrian at the Lycoming Tip-Off Tournament on Friday at 8 p.m.
