The Berkeley College men's basketball team once again has a double-digit winning streak, as the Knight picked up an 84-66 triumph over Columbia International on Friday evening. With the victory, Berkeley has now won 10 consecutive contests, and boasts a record of 13-1 on the 2017-2018 campaign. The Rams – who had their two-game winning streak snapped – fell to 5-12 on the year. The game took place at the Wildcat Center in Charlotte, North Carolina. Following the win, Head Coach Jonathan Pena spoke.
"We had a long bus ride here to North Carolina yesterday – and after a good night's rest – I felt our guys came out here tonight with a ton of energy and determination – and we were able to nail down another win," Pena said. "We executed well on our high-percentage shots, rebounded the basketball well, and didn't commit many turnovers, and when you are efficient in those three aforementioned areas of the game, you have a great chance to win a game. We'll enjoy this one for a short while before coming back out here tomorrow afternoon for a tough one against Johnson & Wales."
The Knights have not missed a beat since having their staggering 56-game winning streak snapped by SUNY Delhi back on November 19, 2017, and excitement for perhaps another long-sustained string of wins is starting to build.
Berkeley was led in this one by Ricardo Ayuso, as he connected on eight of his 10 attempts from the floor – including three of his five launches from three-point territory – to finish with a game-high 21 points. He also notched a game-high four steals, while snatching five rebounds and tallying three assists. Michael Taylor added 17 points, six rebounds, and five assists, and Johnnie Green and Jerell McLeod contributed 13 points apiece.
Despite the loss for Columbia International, the Rams were paced by Micah Banks, as he drilled all seven of his attempts from the charity stripe to finalize his evening with a team-high 18 points. He also snatched three rebounds and tallied two assists. Druw Rollings added 12 points, seven rebounds, two assists, and two steals.
The Knights trailed just briefly in this one, as the Rams took an early 4-0 advantage behind baskets from Rollings and Damarcus Gay. Berkeley then put together an 11-0 run over a span of 2:37 to jump ahead by the score of 11-4. That run featured consecutive converted layups by Taylor and Green, another jumper from Taylor, a basket by McLeod, a made free throw by Ayuso, and then an emphatic dunk by Ayuso. Still, Columbia International kept it close, trailing just 16-15 with 13:17 remaining in the opening session.
Berkeley College would spend the ensuing 7:26 putting some distance between itself and the Rams, as the Knights outscored Columbia International 17-3 over that span to open up a commanding 33-18 edge. The Knights led by as many as 16 in the opening session before taking a 46-31 advantage into the locker room at halftime.
In the second stanza, the Knights led by as many as 20 points, but the Rams would hang in there, pulling to within 11 points (69-58 Berkeley) with just 5:48 remaining in the contest. From there, though, Berkeley College would buckle down defensively and finish the game strong, allowing just three opposing field goals the rest of the way and shutting down Columbia International with authority. The Knights would go on to win the game by 18.
Berkeley College hit on just four of its 17 attempts from beyond the arc, but the Knights hit on an astounding 30 of their 47 attempts from inside the three-point line. Those previous facts all culminated in the Knights shooting 53.1 percent for the night (34-64) compared to just a 39.7 percent conversion rate for the Rams (23-58). Berkeley dominated the glass, out-rebounding Columbia International 39-24, while also tallying 18 assists to the Rams' 11.
The Knights will look to make it 11 consecutive victories tomorrow afternoon, as Berkeley College will take on Johnson & Wales (Charlotte) at the Wildcat Center. Start-time for the game is scheduled for 3:00pm.