A run-and-gun style on both ends of the floor helped propel York to a 15-13 lead 10:45 into the first half behind a go-ahead layup from Chris Roberts. Kings Point then ripped off nine-consecutive points -- five off the hands of Hart -- to take a 22-15 advantage with 5:15 to go before intermission. After both teams traded a pair of points, four of Cardinals freshman Terrin Johnson's game-high 13 points pulled the visitors to within 24-21 with 3:23 before halftime. But the Blue and Gray ripped off nine unanswered points to conclude the half, and Hart's trifecta as time expired gave the Mariners a 33-21 advantage.
Kings Point kept the lead in double digits for the rest of the night, and improved to 9-1 on the 2003-04 season when holding the lead at halftime. A jump shot by Francis Ainoo (nine points) brought the Cardinals to within 47-35 with 9:29 to go in the half. However, that is as close as the CUNYAC Conference representative would get in this one, as USMMA scored 17 of the next 23 points to hold its biggest lead of the contest, 64-41, after sophomore point guard Paul Tricarico drained his only 3-point field goal attempt of the night with 3:06 left in the game.
For the Mariners, junior tri-captain Josh Buck filled the stat sheet in all areas, scoring eight points on 3-for-6 shooting, while also leading the team in rebounds (eight), assists (game-high five) and blocks (game-high-tying two). Whitney pulled down six rebounds in the victory, while freshman shooting guard Brian Kelly netted four of his six field goals for eight points.
Johnson had a game-high nine rebounds for York, while Michael Thompson scored 11 points before fouling out with four-plus minutes left in the contest. Antoine Green swiped a game-best four steals on defense for the Cardinals.
Head coach Chris Carideo's Mariners now turn their attention to the final six games of the season -- all of which are Skyline Conference (4-4 record) contests. Kings Point gets its chance to start building up the win column before defending their three-consecutive conference tournament titles later this month, starting Wednesday night (Feb. 4), when the Mariners play host to Skyline leader (8-1 conference record) Manhattanville at 7 p.m. in Liebertz Gymnasium.
Newspaper Box Score York (N.Y.) vs U.S. Merchant Marine Academy 2/2/04 7 p.m. at Kings Point, N.Y. - Liebertz Gymnasium At Kings Point, N.Y. - Liebertz Gymnasium U.S. MERCHANT MARINE ACADEMY 69, YORK (N.Y.) 48 YORK (N.Y.) (7-12) Johnson, Terrin 3-10 7-8 13; Thompson, Michael 3-8 5-10 11; Ainoo, Francis 3-8 1-2 9; Roberts, Chris 2-2 1-2 5; Mohammed, Reyaad 1-3 0-0 2; Holmes, Jalon 1-3 0-0 2; Liverpool, Kwesi 1-4 0-0 2; Christian, Jonathan 1-2 0-0 2; Green, Antoine 1-6 0-2 2; Cotton, Jesse 0-1 0-0 0. Totals 16-47 14-24 48. U.S. MERCHANT MARINE ACADEMY (10-9) Hart, Joe 4-5 0-0 11; Whitney, Gabe 3-5 5-7 11; Kelly, Brian 4-6 0-0 8; Medvetz, Mark 3-8 0-0 8; Buck, Josh 3-6 0-0 8; Tricarico, Paul 2-3 1-2 6; Wyatte, Zach 1-3 2-2 4; Gartner, Glenn 2-3 0-0 4; Pfahler, Scott 1-2 0-0 3; McDade, Stephen 0-2 2-2 2; Starr, Jamie 1-2 0-0 2; Fassnacht, Jonathan 1-1 0-0 2; Gavis, Tyler 0-1 0-0 0. Totals 25-47 10-13 69. York (N.Y.)................... 21 27 - 48 U.S. Merchant Marine Academy.. 33 36 - 69 3-point goals-York (N.Y.) 2-10 (Ainoo, Francis 2-4; Mohammed, Reyaad 0-2; Green, Antoine 0-3; Cotton, Jesse 0-1), U.S. Merchant Marine Academy 9-21 (Hart, Joe 3-4; Buck, Josh 2-4; Medvetz, Mark 2-5; Tricarico, Paul 1-1; Pfahler, Scott 1-2; McDade, Stephen 0-2; Starr, Jamie 0-1; Kelly, Brian 0-2). Fouled out--York (N.Y.)-Thompson, Michael, U.S. Merchant Marine Academy-None. Rebounds-York (N.Y.) 25 (Johnson, Terrin 9), U.S. Merchant Marine Academy 34 (Buck, Josh 8). Assists-York (N.Y.) 8 (Green, Antoine 4), U.S. Merchant Marine Academy 17 (Buck, Josh 5). Total fouls-York (N.Y.) 15, U.S. Merchant Marine Academy 19. A-168 Ainoo - Intentional foul with 8:47 left in 2nd Thompson - Fouled out with 4:21 left in 2nd USMMA - Snaps five-game losing streak