BRONXVILLE, N.Y. – A Ryan Giordano (West Nyack, N.Y./Clarkstown South) layup with 0.3 seconds left in regulation was the difference maker for the Manhattanville College men's basketball team on Saturday afternoon as the late basket gave the Valiants a 65-64 win over Sarah Lawrence. The win, Manhattanville's fourth in a row, makes the Valiants 8-3 on the year and 2-1 in Skyline play.

After the Gryphons came back from an 11 point second half deficit, a pair of Eamon Kelly free throws for Sarah Lawrence looked to set the home team up for victory, leading 64-63 with 15 seconds to go. However, the Valiants had one last play in their pockets following a timeout. Jake Dunn (Staten Island, N.Y./Monsignor Farrell) inbounded the ball to Tommy Lotito (Staten Island, N.Y./St. Peter's) as the last remaining seconds began to tick away. The senior was swarmed outside the arc by Sarah Lawrence defenders, which allowed Giordano to streak into the key. He was met in stride by a pass from Lotito, flying in under the basket to put in the reserve layup and give the Valiants the winning basket. The Gryphons' Hail Mary off the ensuing inbound was off the mark, allowing Manhattanville to head home with the improbable victory.

While Giordano's heroics closed out the win, it was Lotito's career-high 29 point effort that helped make it possible by allowing the Valiants to erase a 14 point first half hole. Lotito played all 40 minutes and shot 11-of-15 from the field including a perfect 3-of-3 from beyond the arc. He would finish the game with five rebounds, four assists and a pair of steals, all team-leading efforts on the day.

Jackson Leech (Chicago, Ill./Von Steuben) matched Lotito's rebound total, including a team-high two offensive boards, while putting up 12 points on the offensive end. While no other shooter would reach double-figures, Dunn and Andrew Saint-Louis (Norwalk, Conn./Notre Dame Fairfield) finished with eight points each. Xavier Kistoo-Miles (Spring Valley, N.Y./Spring Valley) also got involved in the rebounding effort alongside Lotito and Leech with five boards of his own.

Lotito's career day got started with the opening basket of the contest, but a Chris Torres three pointer put the Gryphons ahead with a lead that would swell up to 18-4 over the first five minutes. The lead would hold at double digits for most of the first half, with a Torres jumper at the seven minute mark making the score 31-19 in favor of Sarah Lawrence. While both teams would go cold and fail to make a basket for the next 2:15, a Saint-Louis three pointer began a 14-2 run that completely wiped away the Gryphon advantage and tie the score up at 33-33 following a Leech jumper. The half came to an end with Kelly sinking a pair of free throws for Sarah Lawrence before Leech went 1-of-2 during his trip to the line to send the teams into the locker room with Sarah Lawrence up 35-34, once again a game after the Valiants' resilient effort.

While Manhattanville was able to erase the double-digit deficit, the Valiants still had some work to do in order to claim their first lead since the opening 30 seconds of the day as an Amos Grey three pointer got the second half scoring started for the Gryphons. The Valiants continued to play catchup until Dunn drilled a shot from behind the arc to tie the score at 44-44 with 13:27 to play before the grad student drew a foul on the following possession and hit both of his free throw attempts. The five points from Dunn kickstarted a 16-2 run for the Valiants that put the visitors up 57-46 entering the final eight minutes.

After witnessing their own double-digit lead go up in smoke earlier in the game, the Gryphons gave the Valiants a taste of their own medicine down the stretch. An 11-2 Sarah Lawrence run once again made it a one possession game with two minutes to play as the Valiant lead shrunk to 59-57. After Lotito would hit one of a piar of free throw attempts, an old-fashioned three point play by Braden Burman tied the game up at 60. Lotito reclaimed the lead for Manhattanville with a three-point play of his own, hitting a jumper and converting on the and-1. Torres made it a one point game with a jump shot on the ensuing trip down the court before Kelly hit the free throws that poised the Gryphons for victory. Ultimately, it would be Giordano shaking off his 0-for-5 start from the floor coming up big when needed the most connecting on the game-winning layup and sending the Valiants home with a win.

Up Next
As the semester concludes next week, the Valiants will be away from action until Dec. 29. Manhattanville returns to the court to close out the month against Lehman at 5 p.m.

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