Men’s Basketball Falls in Overtime to USMMA

BROOKLYN, N.Y. — Junior captain Dimitri Sirakis (Hollis, N.Y./St. Francis Prep) put up a game-high 24 points, while shooting 6-for-9 from three-point land, but that wasn't enough as the St. Joseph's College (Brooklyn) men's basketball (6-11, 5-8 Skyline) team rallied from nine down to force an extra five minutes, but fell to the United States Merchant Marine Academy (6-9, 4-7 Skyline), 76-67, in their fifth overtime game of the season..

How it Happened

Neither team could grab a lead larger than five points, playing neck and neck until about 8:30 left in the first half. With the Bears holding on to a 14-12 lead, went on an 8-0 run, sparked by a three-offensive-rebound possession ending in a Michael Bell three-pointer for the Mariners. Dimitri Sirakis fired right back, knocking down back-to-back trifectas to tie the game 20-all with 5:04 left in the half. The Mariners good shooting to end the half would put them ahead by six but a steal and lay-up by Bryan Medy (Brooklyn, N.Y./Nazareth Regional) would cut their lead to just 28-27 with 33 seconds on the clock. A Seth Barnes three-pointer would grab the four-point lead for USMMA going into the intermission.

A three-pointer from sophomore Frank Reali (Staten Island, N.Y./Susan Wagner) opened up the scoring for the navy and gray in the second half, going on an 11-4 run to grab a 38-37 lead early in the half. USMMA would then hold the Bears to just two points in the next four minutes responding with an 11-2 outburst. The Bears would go on an 18-8 run highlighted by Sebastien Etheart's (Hollis, N.Y./St. Francis Prep) three-point scoring. After shooting poorly in the first half, Etheart would score 13 points in the second half, including three-consecutive three-pointers for the Bears offense. Both squads went back and forth over the final nine minutes of regulation swapping the lead eight times and neither squad ahead by more than two, but deadlocked 64-64 after 40 minutes of play.

USMMA scored the first seven points of the overtime session and never let the Bears back. The Mariners shot 4-for-5 (80%) in the OT period while holding the Bears' shooting down to just 1-for-8 (12.5%) with a Sirakis three-pointer being the only field goal for the Bears, four minutes in.

For the Bears

• Dimitri Sirakis had a near season-high 24 points on 6-of-9 three-point shooting with a rebound and an assist.
• Sebastien Etheart finished with 13 points (all of which were scored in the second half) and 10 boards to complete his seventh double-double game of the season
• Frank Reali added 16 points, seven rebounds, and five assists.

Next up for the Bears

The Bears continue to the second game of this two-game homestand as they host The College of Mount Saint Vincent (5-11, 4-7 Skyline) on Wednesday (Jan. 23). They are set to be the second game of a basketball doubleheader (Women's game at 5 pm and Men's game at 7 pm). Links to live stats and video will be available at SJCBears.com