Box Score

Reading, PA --- The Brooklyn College Men's Basketball Team (6-3, 2-0 CUNYAC) lost the opening game of the 2009 Sheridan New Year's Classic 82-80 to the host school, Albright College (9-3, 0-0 MACC).  Junior forward Richard Jean-Baptiste (St. John's Prep / Queens, NY) netted 27 points to pace the Bridges, who will battle Juniata (2-8, 0-1 LAND) in the consolation game at 2:00 pm this afternoon.

The Bridges battled the Lions at the start, and used a Marlon Thornton (Richmond Hill / Brooklyn, NY) jumper to take a three-point lead, 19-16, midway through the first half.  Back-to-back three point shots by Andre Murphy and Andrew Pomager turned a three-point cushion into a three-point hole, and Albright would push the lead to four points, 39-35 at intermission.

The Lions came out strong, scoring the first nine points of the second period to open up a 13 point lead.  The margin swayed between eight and 13 points for the next nine minutes of play as the Bridges waited for their opportunity to pounce.  A trifecta by Richard Jean-Baptiste at the 9:51 mark ignited a 17-2 rally over the next five minutes that gave the Bridges a 71-69 advantage with four and a half minutes to play.

After a pail of foul shots from Zac Scheafer tied the game, BC rattled off seven straight points, the last three coming on a long-range jumper by Daniel Nisbett (Michael J, Petrides / Staten Island, NY), to take a 78-71 edge in the final two minutes.  The host Lions would not be denied, as they turned a pair of Brooklyn turnovers and a defensive rebound into seven quick points of their own to knot the score at 78 with 48 seconds remaining in regulation.

A Pomager steal turned into a Murphy lay-up and the Lions led by two in the final thirty seconds.  BC's Amil John (South Shore / Brooklyn, NY) had a quick bucket and the game was again tied, this time with just 21 ticks to play.  The Lions next possession ended with a Phil Hall lay-in at 0:06/  Brooklyn quickly inbounded the ball, but was unable to get a shot off before time expired.

In addition to his game-high 27 points, Jean-Baptiste also had a team-high nine rebounds and a season-high five blocks.  Sopphomore Ahmad Hemingway (Curtis / Brooklyn, NY) scored 17 and added five assists. Nisbett chipped in with 14 points. The Lions were led by Hall, whose game-winning bucket accounted for the final two of his team-best 26 points.