NEWBURGH, N.Y. – The Manhattanville College men's basketball team played its first Skyline Conference game since winning the league back in 2007 tonight, Wednesday, Jan. 8, and the Valiants sure made a splash in their return. Thanks in large part to a 44-point second half, the Crimson and White defeated Mount Saint Mary College on the road by a score of 74-52 to earn the victory.
 
Manhattanville (6-4, 1-0 Skyline) had 10 players register at least one point against the Knights (2-8, 0-1 Skyline), with three of them – junior Mike Granda (Monroe Township, N.J./St. Joseph), rookie Tommy Lotito (Staten Island, N.Y./St. Peter's) and senior JoJo Cobbs (Elmsford, N.Y./Briarcliff) – notching double-figures. Additionally, led by Lotito's team-high-tying 14 points, the Valiant bench players outscored that of Mount Saint Mary 27-9.
 
The first half was back and forth throughout, but the Valiants actually trailed until the halfway point of the period before an and-one layup and subsequent made free throw from sophomore Petey Galgano (New Rochelle, N.Y./Wilbraham & Monson Academy (Mass.)) tied it up at 13-13, and then gave Manhattanville the one-point lead with 10:10 remaining until the break. The squads traded the lead back several more times in the remainder of the half before the Valiants managed to take a two-point lead after 20 minutes of play. Granda scored 11 of his 14 points in the first, making 3-of-5 from long range and adding five boards.
 
Slowly but surely, Manhattanville began stretching its lead in the second half, and then started to put it away. Up by nine at 45-36 with 12:49 remaining, the Valiants proceeded to go on a 10-0 run to make it a 19-point game with 8:12 left. Cobbs sank five of those 10 points, while Lotito added a three and rookie Ryan Giordano (West Nyack, N.Y./Clarkstown South) buried a jumper. The Crimson and White went up by as many as 23 points on three occasions before finishing with the 22-point victory.
 
Highlights:

• Manhattanville outscored the Knights 12-4 in points off turnovers. The Valiants notched nine steals as a team and forced a total of 12 Mt. St. Mary turnovers.
• Lotito added four boards, three assists, two blocks and a steal to his 14 points. He was also 4-of-5 from beyond the arc.
• Granda finished with a team-high-tying seven rebounds, three assists and a steal as well.
• Cobbs chipped in with 12 points and also registered four rebounds, three assists, a block and a steal.
• Galgano put up another solid all around stat line – eight points, seven rebounds, a game-high five assists and one steal.
• Sophomore Jake Dunn (Staten Island, N.Y./Monsignor Farrell) led all players with four steals. He added seven points, three rebounds, one assists and one block.
• Rookie Khari Taylor (Bronx, N.Y./St. Raymond) made his first-career start and finished with six points and five rebounds.
• Sophomore Matt Bielenda (Wethersfield, Conn./Xavier) also notched six points and two boards off the bench.

The Valiants return to action next when they open home Skyline play for the season this weekend. Manhattanville hosts the United States Merchant Marine Academy at Kennedy Gymnasium in Purchase, N.Y., on Saturday afternoon, Jan. 11, for a scheduled 2:00 p.m. tip. The two programs have not faced one another since the Crimson and White's last season in the conference 12 years ago.