Hackettstown, NJ – It was a thriller at the John M. Reeves Student Recreation Center on Saturday afternoon as Centenary College (1-3) pulled out a hard fought 65-62 win over the Baruch Bearcats (1-1).
 
It was Rashaan Spencer and Andy Charles who led the Cyclone offense in this afternoon's home opener to help secure Centenary's first win of the season.  Spencer netted a team-high 15 points on 5-of-7 shooting and sinking 3-of-4 from behind the arc.  Charles collected 12 points shooting 5-for-7 from the field and a perfect 2-for-2 from three point land, one of which put the Cyclones ahead with 6:47 to go in the game.
 
After a closely contested first half, Centenary led most of the way with their largest lead being capped off at six points.   The Cyclones went into the break with a slim 32-29 advantage.
 
After regrouping at halftime, the Bearcat's Raymond De La Cruz, sank back to back three pointers sparking an 18-1 run to claim their largest lead of the night at 12 points (49-37).
 
With the game slipping away from them, the Cyclones didn't quit, as after a time-out by Head Coach Tim Fusina, the Cyclones stormed back in dramatic fashion. Over the next five minutes Centenary quickly went on a 13-2 run to tie the game at 51 while Charles netted a deep three ball to extend the run (16-2) and regain the lead (54-51).
 
With just under five minutes left in the game, the Cyclones tried to preservet their lead increasing it to five with 4:39 to go, however, Baruch sparked yet another run (6-1) to tie the game at 59 with 2:25 to go in the game. 
 
It was an electric atmosphere as the Cyclones and Bearcats traded baskets until 10 seconds left in regulation. Tied at 62 with 51 seconds left to go in regulation, Josh Case netted 1-of-2 free throws to lead by one (63-62).  After the Bearcats missed two straight free-throws in an attempt to regain the lead, Zachary Duymich inbounded a deep lob pass to Spencer for the easy lay-up and increase the lead to 65-62 with eight seconds left. 

Baruch had one more chance to tie the game but were unsuccessful as Centenary was able to stave off the Bearcats last-second push to tie the game and escaped with their first victory of the season.
 
A solid shooting day for Centenary as they shot 60% (9-15) in three pointers including an 83.3% in the first half. The Cyclones also finished 45.8% from the field making 22 out of 48 attempts. 
 
The Cyclones will look get a winning streak going in their next matchup as they open conference play against Cairn University in Langhorne, PA November 24th @ 7pm.