Men's Basketball 1/9/2015 12:32:00 AM By Andrew Capitelli (BMCC Sports Information)

#7 Men Win, Women Lose in Nail-Biting Double-Feature with LaGuardia

Both the men and women return to action on Saturday

Box Score 1 | Box Score 2

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SELDEN ,NY| The Borough of Manhattan Community College men's and women's basketball teams split an exciting CUNY Athletic Conference doubleheader with LaGuardia Community College on Thursday night in Manhattan, with the women playing to a 60-58 loss in the opener and the #7 men claiming a 78-75 overtime victory in the closing match.

The Lady Panthers entered the second half tied at 29 and eventually built a 38-31 lead at 13:58 of the second frame, but LaGuardia erased the deficit with a 19-3 run to claim a 52-41 lead. The Lady Panthers would score 12 of the last 15 points to draw the contest to back to two points, but would fail to find an equalizer and were handed their ninth loss of the season (2-9).

Despite the loss, freshman stand-out Kristen Merrell tied a season-best after scoring 38 points. The Staten Island native scored 38 in the season opener on November 4 at Bergen Community College. Merrell also registered 12 rebounds to collect the double-double on Saturday night.

The Lady Panthers matched the Red Hawks on the boards (42 each), but the visitors claimed a sizable advantage in second-chance points (18-9) and it proved to be crucial to their success.

The men led as much as 14 (23-9) in the first half and even carried a 31-21 lead into the second half, but LaGuardia pushed back in the second half and slowly chipped away at the hosts' lead.

The Red Hawks tied (58-58) the game for the first time with 4:32 left in the second, and after dueling three pointers late in regulation, the CUNYAC rivals headed to overtime—the first time this season for the Panthers—tied at 67.

BMCC's Elijah Bryant would score a clutch three-pointer late in the extra frame which would prove to be the dagger for LaGuardia. The Panthers then went on to win their conference and region leading 14^th victory (14-1).

Bryant, although quiet in the first half, shared the team-lead in scoring with Justin Manon (17 points) with both guards sinking three three-pointers each. Bryant also grabbed eight boards.

Forward Kenneth Coar scored 16 and grabbed nine rebounds in the win, and Joseph Ojo potted 12 points, six rebounds and five assists.

Both the women and men return to action Saturday, January 10 when Nassau Community College visits Manhattan for a Region XV doubleheader. The women kick off the afternoon at 12:00 PM and the men close out the afternoon at 2:00 PM.

As always, check back on BMCCAthletics.com for the latest news and developments surrounding the BMCC Panthers. Also follow us on Facebook and Twitter at @BMCCAthletics for up-to-the-minute stories and in-game updates.

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Players Mentioned

#25 Kristen Merrell: G/F; 5' 6"; Freshman

#3 Elijah Bryant: G; 6' 0"; Sophomore

#44 Kenneth Coar: F; 6' 6"; Freshman

#10 Justin Manon: G; 5' 9"; Sophomore

#11 Joseph Ojo: G; 5' 11"; Sophomore

Players Mentioned

#25 Kristen Merrell
: 5' 6"; Freshman
: G/F

#3 Elijah Bryant
: 6' 0"; Sophomore
: G

#44 Kenneth Coar
: 6' 6"; Freshman
: F

#10 Justin Manon
: 5' 9"; Sophomore
: G

#11 Joseph Ojo
: 5' 11"; Sophomore
: G