Bears Comeback Bid to York Falls Short Ending Three-Game Streak

BROOKLYN, N.Y. – For the second time in as many days, the St. Joseph's College (Brooklyn) men's basketball team attempted a last minute rally, but this time the outcome would be reversed, watching their three-game win streak snapped by York College (N.Y.), 76-72, on Saturday evening at Brooklyn Technical High School.

The Bears (5-3) dug themselves too deep of a hole to climb out of, trailing by 19 with 2:34 before halftime in a high scoring first-half that saw York (3-4) post nearly 50 points, taking a 49-35 lead at the break.

Four Bears finished in double figures led by sophomore David Louison (Brooklyn, NY/St. Edmund Prep) who produced his sixth double-double of the season with 14 points, 13 rebounds, four assists and three steals.  Freshman Michael Megafu (Brooklyn, NY/Nazareth Regional) notched his fourth double-double with 10 points and 13 caroms, sharing game-high honors with Louison.

Sophomore Vernon Maddox (Staten Island, NY/St. Peter's) added 12 points off the bench, going a perfect 8-for-8 from the charity stripe and dished out a game-high five assists.  Junior David Ortiz (Brooklyn, NY/Christ the King) chipped in 10 points.

York was led by Tony Vails who netted 23 points, on 10-of-20 shooting, extending his streak of 20-plus point games to seven. DaShawn Bobbitt and Jose Arroyo added 12 each.

Both teams jockeyed for position early, the Cardinals pulling away to a six point advantage before a 9-2 run capped by a Matt O'Neill (Brooklyn, NY/St. Edmund Prep) trifecta gave the Bears back the lead, 12-11.

The squads traded the lead several times until York ran off 12 points unanswered in less than one minute; York gaining a seven-point possession after an intentional foul call on a breakaway incited coach Cocozello, which drew a technical. After the ensuing free throws, Bobbitt knocked down a three-pointer and Thomas Hart converted a conventional three-point play on the next Cardinal possession and the Bears found themselves trailing 37-26, down 11 in the blink of an eye. 

After connecting on just one three-pointer all half, the Cardinals knocked down three in three minutes to pull away, a Michael Trowers triple bringing about the game's largest separation, 45-26, with 2:37 left.

St. Joseph's struggled to cut into the York advantage in the second half hovering around the halftime 14-point deficit for most of the frame.  With just under three minutes left, the Bears still trailed by 14, 74-60, and scored eight unanswered on a Megafu putback and back-to-back triples from Ortiz and O'Neill that brought the lead down to 74-68 with 1:30 to play.  O'Neill soon after got another clean look at a three to bring the game to one possession, but was too strong and the freshman would finish with a career-high nine points on three triples.

A pair of layups from Louison at the 1:11 and 0:13 marks pulled the Bears within two as the Bears defense extended the Cardinal scoring drought for over two-and-a-half minutes.  But after sending the Cardinals to the line in the bonus with 11 seconds left, Trowers sank both free throws to seal the victory.

The Bears will look to rebound concluding a four-game homestand at Brooklyn Technical High School hosting Bard College on Tuesday, December 4th at 7:30 p.m.