PURCHASE, N.Y. – The Manhattanville College men's basketball team opened the 2018-19 season with a bang Thursday night, Nov. 8, putting up triple digits in a 110-73 statement victory over Maritime College at the Kennedy Gymnasium.
Things were under control quickly for the Valiants (1-0) as they jumped out to a 59-35 lead after the first half against the Privateers (0-1), and then outscored the visitors 51-38 in the second half to cement the 37-point victory. Manhattanville's 110 points were the most scored for the program since a 115-111 win over Middle Atlantic Conference (MAC) foe King's College (Pa.) back on Jan. 29, 2011. The difference there was that the Valiants and Monarchs had to go to double-overtime to reach those totals, while Manhattanville reached 110 points in regulation Thursday.
The home squad received contributions from the entire team, with the entire roster playing at least seven minutes. Sophomore
Sean Smith, Jr. (Yonkers, N.Y./Sacred Heart) led the way for Manhattanville, notching his second-career double-double with game highs in points (23) and rebounds (11) in just 21 minutes on the court. He was the only player to pull down double-digit boards for either team and was extremely efficient from the floor, shooting 6-of-7 and doing a lot of damage from the stripe (9-of-13 FT).
The highlight of the night came on the second Valiant basket of the second half when sophomore
Mike Granda (Monroe Township, N.J./St. Joseph) lined up for what looked to be a three-point attempt, but actually turned out to be a pass at rim level. Smith caught it mid-air and threw down a vicious alley-oop for the night's only dunk.
Manhattanvlle now leads Maritime 32-8 in the all-time series, as the two used to be conference opponents in the Skyline Conference for years. Following 2018-19, the Valiants' final year as a member of the MAC Freedom, the two programs will once again be conference foes as Manhattanville rejoins the Skyline in 2019-20.
Notable Performers:
- Junior co-captain JoJo Cobbs (Elmsford, N.Y./Briarcliff) added 12 points on 5-of-8 from the floor.
- Rookie Petey Galgano (New Rochelle, N.Y./Wilbraham & Monson Academy (Mass.)) chipped in 11 points and a game-high four assists in his collegiate debut.
- Granda and fellow sophomore Angus Davis (Brisbane, Australia/Marist College Ashgrove), along with rookie Connor Yetman (Sydney, Australia/The Scots College (H.S.)), all finished with nine points apiece.
- Freshman Chris Brown (Miami, Fla./Coral Gables Senior) finished with seven points and seven boards in his debut.
- Senior Thomas Hickey (Mount Vernon, N.Y./Fordham Prep) also pulled down seven rebounds, a career best for the 6-foot-7 big man. He also played a career-high 11 minutes.
Manhattanville will take the next week to prepare for the A.J. Buchanan Classic. The Valiants will host a trio of visiting teams in the annual tournament at Kennedy Gymnasium next weekend, Friday-Saturday, Nov. 16-17. Oglethorpe University will face The Sage Colleges to kick off the Classic Friday night at 6:00 p.m., followed by Manhattanville hosting another future Skyline rival in St. Joseph's College-Brooklyn at 8:00 p.m. The consolation and championship games are scheduled for 1:00 p.m. and 3:00 p.m. Saturday, respectively.
