Leading 41-34 at the break, the Ducks put together a 21-7 run over the first seven minutes of the second half to open a 62-41 cushion with 13 minutes remaining. Farid scored seven points in the spurt. Sophomore guards Virgil Gray II (Elmwood, N.J.) and Anthony Passalacqua (Staten Island, N.Y.) combined for 11 points in the run. Freshman guard Matt Higgins (Freehold, N.J.) added a big three-pointer as well.
Merchant Marine (10-8, 5-4 Skyline) worked its way back into the game with a methodical 26-11 run over an eight-minute stretch to pull within four points with 4:10 remaining. Sophomore guard Pat Grace (Ellicott City, Md.) knocked down a three-pointer to bring the Mariners within 71-67 at a critical juncture.
Stevens, which has won five straight and 11 of its last 12 games, answered with a decisive 7-0 run in the span of 77 seconds to put the game away. Farid drained a clutch three-pointer with 3:44 left. Junior forward Joseph Ayodele (Tempe, Ariz.) followed with a lay-up. Gray capped the spurt with a jumper to put the Ducks up 78-67 with 2:27 to play.
Passalacqua finished the game with 21 points and seven rebounds. He shot 8-for-11 from the floor and was 3-for-6 from downtown. Gray totaled 17 points on eight of 14 shooting. He had five rebounds as well. Higgins was 3-for-3 from the field and 3-for-3 at the foul line for 10 points. Senior guard Floyd Morris (East Windsor, N.J.) did a fine job orchestrating the offense once again as he collected five assists and did not commit a single turnover. Morris also posted four points and three rebounds in the win.
USMMA was led by a 21-point, six-rebound and four-assist performance from Grace, who made four three-pointers. Senior guard Brian Kelly (Belle Harbour, N.Y.) and freshman guard Ryan Samuel (Cedar Hill, Texas) scored 14 points apiece for the Mariners.
For the game, Stevens shot 52.5 percent (32-for-61) from the field. Merchant Marine was 24 of 54 (44.4 percent) from the floor in the contest.
The Ducks will return to action on Tuesday when they host defending Skyline Conference champion Farmingdale State College at 7 p.m. That game will be carried live at www.duckcast.com.