New York, New York - With the 2022-23 CUNYAC CC Men's Basketball Championship seven days and a matchup with a nationally ranked opponent over the weekend, the BMCC men's basketball team looked to build some momentum as they headed up to the Bronx on Thursday night. The Panthers exploded for a 54.5% shooting effort from the field (18-33 FG) and a 44-point second-half effort to pull away from the Broncos for an 80-51 victory to close out CUNYAC regular season competition at Alumni Gymnasium.
 
BMCC reaches double-digit wins for the first time since the 2019-20 season improving to 10-10 (7-3 CUNYAC), while Bronx Community College drops to 1-23 (1-9 CUNYAC). The Panthers also captured seven conference victories for the first time since the 2018-19 campaign. 
 
Eight different Panthers players recorded points on the night, and four scored in double figures for the third time this season. Freshman Ysaia Marte (Bronx, New York) led the offensive and defensive charge for the second straight game dropping a game-high 19 points, with 10 coming in the first half to go along with a game-best five steals. Classmate Daniel Laffitte (New York, New York) posted his second double-double of the season, hauling down 13 of his career and game-high 17 rebounds in the first half and 10 of his 13 points in the opening period.
 
Fellow freshman Jayden Jarrett (Bronx, New York) contributed 12 points and missed a double-double by one rebound with nine, while Jeremiah Cardi (New York, New York) had 10 points. Underclassman Leverson Tulien (Roslyn Heights, New York) handed out a career and game-high nine assists while turning away a game-best three shots.
 
The Panthers got in done on both sides of the floor and shared the basketball all night, distributing a season-high 25 assists with seven players recording a dime while outrebounding the Broncos 50-35. BMCC also grasped 12 steals and 10 or more for the fifth straight contest and the 14th time on the season.
 
The Panthers also knocked down 33 field goals, third most on the season, for a 48.5% shooting percentage.
 
The first half was a competitive back-and-forth affair between both squads, with eight different lead changes over the first eight minutes and neither team trailing by more than two. After a Matthew Candelaria jumper at 12:07 gave the Broncos a 10-9 lead, the Panthers used a 10–3 run to stretch their advantage to six, 16-10 at 11:05 and 19-12 at 9:49 on a pair of three-pointers from Cardi and Laffitte.
 
Bronx Community College trimmed the BMCC lead down to one, 19-18, with six consecutive points capped off by a Dominique Norman trey at 8:24. The Panthers would take over from there, rolling off a 9-0 run to get their lead to double digits for the first time on the evening 28-18 at 6:49 on a layup from Laffitte and outscore the Broncos 17-9 down the stretch to lead 36-27 at halftime.
 
BMCC exploded out of the gate in the second half with a ferocious 15-4 run to get their lead to 20 for the first time on the night, 51-31, on a Dunk from Adewale Fasanmi (Brooklyn, New York). The Panthers never looked back, building their advantage to its largest of the night, 34, 76-42 at 3:48 on a jumper from Jarrett, and cruising from there en route to an 80-51 victory.
 
Bronx Community College was led by Taijay Good, who posted a team-high 13 points, and Dominique Norman ripped down a team-best 12 rebounds while Adrian Ceballos and Herbert Gary dished out a team-best three assists and gobbled up a team-high two steals each.

The Panthers look for back-to-back victories on Saturday, February 10, as they head down the Jersey Shore to take on nationally ranked No. 5 Brookdale Community College at 1 p.m. at Brookdale Recreation and Events Center in Lincroft, New Jersey. For more information, visit the BMCC Men's Basketball Schedule Page.
 

ABOUT THE ATHLETIC PROGRAM AT BOROUGH OF MANHATTAN COMMUNITY COLLEGE
The athletic program at Borough of Manhattan Community College encompasses a total of eight varsity teams competing at the NJCAA Division III level. For the latest news on the Panthers, please visit us at https://bmccathletics.com - The official site of BMCC Athletics. Follow the Panthers on Instagram (@bmcc_athletics) and Twitter (@BMCCAthletics), and Like Us on Facebook (BMCC Athletics).