Box Score PURCHASE, N.Y. – The Manhattanville men's basketball team erased almost all of a 16-point halftime deficit in the second half, but the Valiants were unable to get over the hump and eventually fell by a 63-58 score to Delaware Valley in a key Freedom Conference contest on Wednesday night at Kennedy Gym.
 
Down by a 46-30 score at the break, the Valiants slowly chipped away at the Aggie lead early in the second half, using four points from sophomore Mike Murray (Queens, N.Y./St. Francis Prep) to start a 7-0 run that got the lead down to a manageable seven (50-43) with 12:51 left. The deficit bounced between five and seven for the next six minutes before the home team made another push, as a free throw by junior Colin Campbell (Miami, Fla./LaSalle) and a pair of buckets from freshman Andrew Winter (Queens, N.Y./St. Francis Prep) made it a 56-54 score with 3:46 to go.
 
Freshman Anthony Maestre (Bronx, N.Y./Mount St. Michael Academy) counted a jumper from Jeremy Beckett with a pair of free throws to keep it a two-point game with 2:40 on the clock, but after opportunities on both ends Jay Donovan sank a huge three-pointer to make it 61-56 Aggies with 1:37 remaining.
 
The Valiants had plenty of chances to close the gap, but the team's next three shots all went awry before Campbell sunk a desperation layup with five seconds left to make it 61-58. With the home team's hopes dim, Daulton Derr was fouled and sunk both shots from the line to seal the victory for the Aggies.
 
Junior Jack Bramswig (Pleasantville, N.Y./Pleasantville) picked up his conference-best ninth double-double of the year in a losing effort, leading Manhattanville (8-8, 2-3 Freedom) with 12 points and hauling in a game-high 12 rebounds. Campbell also reached double figures with 11 points to go with six boards, three assists and a steal, while both Murray and Maestre chipped in nine apiece as well.
 
Donovan led all players with his 15 points for Delaware Valley (9-7, 3-2 Freedom), followed by Nick Sullivan, who scored all 12 of his points in the first 20 minutes. Beckett and Derr both had 11 points each for the Aggies as well in the win.
 
Manhattanville was able to get back into the game due to some rough shooting from the Aggies in the second half, as the visitors hit just 7 of 28 shots (25.0 percent), and yet DelVal still finished the night at 43.6 percent thanks to stellar 17-of-27 (63.0 percent) shooting in the opening frame. Manhattanville connected at a 41.8 percent (23 for 55) clip on the night, but struggled from beyond the arc (4 for 14) and hit just 1-of-9 attempts in the second half.
 
The visitors were in position to lapse somewhat in the second half thanks to a strong first half, in which they outscored the home team by a 30-15 margin over the final 11 minutes to take control of the contest. An 18-3 DVC run turned a one-point lead with 11:26 to go into a 16-point edge at 34-18 with 5:02 on the clock, and the Aggies were able to build up their advantage to as many as 19 on two Sullivan free throws before Manhattanville ended the half with a Murray three.
 
Manhattanville will face another key conference matchup on Saturday, as the Valiants travel back to Wilkes-Barre, Pa., to take on King's (Pa.) beginning at 3 p.m.