The Berkeley College men's basketball team picked up a hard-fought victory in its home finale on Sunday evening, defeating the Shock of Washington Adventist by a score of 80-73 on Senior Day. The contest took place at the Nat Holman Gymnasium in upper Manhattan. With the win, Berkeley improved to a mark of 16-10 on the season, while the Shock dipped to 21-6.

 

Prior to the game, the Berkeley College Department of Athletics and the men's basketball program took the time to honor senior Marc Combs, as well as five seniors from last year's team who weren't able to get honored a year ago, including Rashaun Thomas, Foday Saccoh, William Gough, Daquan Jackson, and Tristan Polnitz. After some heartfelt words from Jonathan Pena were read over the PA system, each senior was presented with a beautiful senior trophy in a show of appreciation for their contributions to the program over the years.

 

In the victory for the Knights, who have won eight of their past nine games, Combs was electric on the day he was honored, as he netted 16 of his game-high 22 points in the second half. He also grabbed eight rebounds, dished four assists, and tied for the game-high of three steals. Malachi Faison posted a double-double with 17 points and 12 rebounds to go along with three assists and three steals, and standout Jihadu Brunner added 15 points, three rebounds and two dimes, while swiping two steals. Finally, it was Kenneth Hines finalizing his evening with 10 points, eight boards, three steals, and two blocks.

 

Washington Adventist was paced by Derrick Hopkins, as she scored a team-high 18 points, draining four treys in the process, in 23 minutes off of the bench. He also collected six rebounds, as well. Mohamed Bundu registered a double-double, netting 13 points, snatched a team-high 10 rebounds, tied for the game-high of five assists, and blocking a game-high five shots. Michael Brown (5-6 FT) added 13 points while collecting three rebounds, and Daris Huff and Ethan Murphy scored 12 and 11 points, respectively.

 

The Shock raced out an 8-2 lead just 96 seconds into the game, but the Knights put together a 13-2 run over the ensuing 3:21 to snatch a 15-10 lead. That aforementioned run included a converted trey by Brunner, a converted layup by Combs, and eight consecutive points by Faison. 

 

Later in the half, with Berkeley leading 22-15, the Knights' offense went on a major scoring drought, going 9:08 without scoring a point. During that time, Washington Adventist put together a 15-0 run to catapult ahead 30-22. Brunner's three-point basket with 4:09 remaining in the half ended the Knights' drought, and pulled Berkeley to within five at 30-25. Berkeley closed the gap to three points, 35-32, with 2:31 remaining in the session, but the Shock would close the half on a 9-2 run, a spurt that featured a buzzer-beating trifecta by Hopkins, to grab a 44-34 edge as the teams headed to the locker room at halftime.

 

In the second half, Washington Adventist led by as many as 13 (49-36), and held a 10-point edge (54-44) with 15:07 to go, before Berkeley turned the entire game around. The Knights scored nine straight points to slice the visitors' advantage to one point, 54-53, with 12:09 to go. Berkeley would finally take the lead again on a converted layup by Julio Wallace, as the Knights went up 57-56 with 10:50 left. 

 

Later, with the game tied at 64 apiece and 6:06 remaining, the Shock's Michael Brown would nail a trifecta to put his team up 67-64. A 6-0 run gave the Knights a 70-67 advantage, but Brown was then fouled on a three-point shot, putting him at the line with a chance to tie the game with three conversions. He would go ahead and hit all three free throws, tying the game at 70-all with 3:26 left.

 

Hines put the Knights up for good, sinking a layup to give Berkeley a 72-70 edge. The Knights would never trail again, and Berkeley allowed just one field goal by the opposition the rest of the way. The Knights scored 10 of the final 13 points of the game to solidify a solid victory against a fierce opponent.

 

The Knights connected on 43.8 percent of their attempts from the floor, while the Shock hit on 25 of its 63 shots from the floor (39.7 percent). Berkeley held a slim 45-40 edge on the glass, while also winning the turnover battle, committing just 16 miscues, while Washington Adventist had 19. The Shock did hold a 19-16 edge in assists.

 

Berkeley will now get ready for the 2022-2023 Hudson Valley Intercollegiate Athletic Conference Men's Basketball Tournament. The semifinals will take place on Saturday, with the Knights' opponent, as well as the time of the contest, both to-be-determined. Should Berkeley advance to Sunday's championship contest, the game would begin at 3:30pm.