Brooklyn, NY – The Centenary College men's basketball team wrapped up their season with a 68-63 loss against Brooklyn College in the ECAC Tournament. With the loss, Centenary stands at a 15-13 overall record, while Brooklyn improves to 23-6 and advances to the semifinal round.
In the opening minutes, Centenary took advantage of Brooklyn's cold start and quickly created a 5-0 advantage. The Bulldogs would answer with a 7-0 run to take the lead (7-5). Both squads would trade baskets, but Brooklyn would push ahead creating a seven-point advantage (20-13) midway through the first half. Centenary would battle back posting a 22-3 run for their largest lead of the half (35-23) capped off by
Kyle Smith after draining back-to-back three pointers.
The Bulldogs would go on a 5-0 spurt to cut the deficit and head into the locker room trailing by seven (35-28).
After the break, the Cyclones regained their momentum increasing their lead back up to 12 (47-35) after three consecutive steals by
Kyle Smith aided
Djovan Beausejour's three buckets.
At the 13:50 mark, Brooklyn's Egzon Gjonbalaj single-handedly would bring the bulldogs all the way back scoring 18 of his 26 points throughout the rest of the half. The Bulldogs regained the advantage (55-53) at the 5:17 mark and would hold the Cyclones off to seal the win.
Beausejour led the Cyclones with a team-high 17 points shooting 6-9 from the field and 3-4 from behind the arc.
Andy Charles added 11 points and nine rebounds, while
Kyle Smith finished the day with nine points and five steals.
Anthony Bailey chipped in eight points and
Josh Case tallied six.
Brooklyn's Gjonbalaj led all scorers with 26 points and 13 rebounds, while Valon Djombalic added 12 points and 14 boards.
Centenary closes out a successful season after posting a season-best 15 wins along with advancing to the semifinals in the Conference Tournament for the first time since joining the league. Three seniors have played their final game as a Cyclone but with a young squad returning, Centenary will look to be a force in the 15-16 season.
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