PURCHASE, N.Y. – The Manhattanville University men's basketball team matched the best single-game free throw effort in program history but the success at the line was not enough to overcome a dominant performance off the glass by the visiting Gryphons as the Valiants fell to Sarah Lawrence, 69-64. Manhattanville falls to 5-9 overall and is now 1-4 in the Skyline, while the Gryphons remain atop the Skyline Gold Division with a perfect 5-0 mark in conference, now standing at 9-5 overall on the year.
The Valiants went 19-for-20 at the free throw line, including hitting all 12 of their attempts in the second half. Wednesday was just the second time in recorded program history that Manhattanville hit at a .950 rate on free throws with a minimum of 20 attempts, with the previous instance coming all the way back on Jan. 18, 2012 against Delaware Valley.
Carlos Urena (Corona, N.Y./Monsignor McClancy) led the effort at the line by hitting all eight of his attempted en route to his 13 point night.
Andrew Saint-Louis (Norwalk, Conn./Notre Dame Fairfield) was also a perfect 6-for-6 on free throws and added a team-high four three-pointers as he led all scorers with 20 points.
John Ranaghan (Pearl River, N.Y./Pearl River) drilled all four of his attempts from the line and matched Urena's scoring output to round out Manhattanville's top scorers.
The Gryphons were hawks on rebounds, winning the battle of the board 49-26. More tellingly, Sarah Lawrence pulled down 19 offensive rebounds compared to just four by the Valiants. Despite the visitors dominating off the glass,
Jack Scanlon (Pearl River, NY/Pearl River High School) was able to piece together a strong individual performance with eight rebounds to match his season high. The senior leads the Valiants with 73 rebounds on the year.
Neither offense looked fully in sync following the opening tip as the Gryphons built up a 7-0 lead over the first five and a half minutes. Manhattanville missed each of its first seven shots before Emmanel Udeagha finally put points up on the home side of the board. Sarah Lawrence continued to lead throughout the first half up until the closing minute when
John Ranaghan (Pearl River, N.Y./Pearl River) capped off a 9-0 Valiant run to erases an eight point deficit and put the Valiants up for the first time all night at 25-24. Eamon Kelly put Sarah Lawrence back in front momentarily before a 1-of-2 trip to the line from Scanlon sent the teams downstairs tied 26-26.
Saint-Louis drilled a three ball out of the break to put the Valiants up. Seven lead changes followed over the following ten minutes when the Gryphons went on a seven-point run to gain some separation, leading 51-45 with 9:19 left to play. Sarah Lawrence's lead peaked at a seven-point advantage, and while Manhattanville was able to pull back even at 58-58 with four minutes remaining, they were unable to reclaim the lead. The Gryphons rebuilt a lead up to seven, going ahead 65-58 with two minutes left to go. Sarah Lawrence would need all of it, as Manhattanville's last effort brought it to a one-point game again with 13 seconds left before the guests put the game on ice by hitting all four of their final free throw attempts on the night.
The Gryphon big man Chris Dougherty was a force in the second half with eight rebounds and three blocks to deny the Valiants of scoring opportunities.
Up Next
The Valiants will look to bounce back when they host Old Westbury on Saturday. Tipoff is scheduled for 7 p.m. at Kennedy Gymnasium.
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