The No. 8-seeded Berkeley College men's basketball team picked up a colossal victory on Tuesday evening, defeating No. 1 seeded Bryant & Stratton-Syracuse by a score of 81-68 in the quarterfinal round of the 2024-2025 USCAA Division I Men's Basketball Tournament. With the victory, the Knights improved to 18-10 overall on the season, including a mark of 13-2 since January 12. The Bobcats dipped to a record of 17-5 with the defeat.
In the victory for the Knights, DeMarco Watson put together an incredible game, connecting on eight of his 11 shots from the floor and netting a game-high 22 points. His 11 rebounds on the evening also led all players. Jerald Campbell (6-10 FG) contributed 13 points and a pair of rebounds, and Jesse Taylor drained seven of his 10 attempts from the free throw line, finishing his evening with nine points.
Despite the loss for the Bobcats, Bryant & Stratton-Syracuse was paced by Jordan Drain, as he posted a double-double with team-highs of 18 points and 10 rebounds. Justice Carrington scored 12 points and snatched five rebounds in 26 minutes off the bench, and Chamarri Baskerville nearly posted a double-double, finishing with 11 points and nine boards. Finally, it was Keon Armstrong finishing with 10 points on the night.
In what was a tightly-contested game for a majority of the 40 minutes played, neither squad took a lead larger than four points until Berkeley's DeMarco Watson converted on a layup with 46 seconds remaining in the first half to put the Knights ahead 39-34. A free throw apiece by Yasin Abdur-Rashid and Justyce Coleman upped Berkeley's edge to seven, 41-34, as the teams entered the locker room at halftime.
In the second half, Berkeley held a 52-48 advantage with 12:22 to play, before an 11-5 run by the Bobcats over a span of 5:22 put Bryant & Stratton-Syracuse ahead 59-57. The Knights snatched the lead back with 6:44 remaining when Campbell connected on a bucket and drew a foul. He would convert on the ensuing freebee, putting Berkeley up 60-59.
74 seconds later, the No. 1 seeded Bobcats grabbed the lead again thanks to a converted layup by Keon Armstrong, but that advantage lasted just 11 seconds, as Ike Sheppard drained a triple, as the pendulum swung Berkeley's way, giving the Knights a 63-61 edge.
Bryant & Stratton-Syracuse's Darren Joyner knotted the game at 63-all with a pair of made free throws with 5:12 left, but it was all Berkeley down the stretch after that. The Knights finished the game strong, converted on 10 of their 14 free throw attempts and outscoring the Bobcats 18-5 the rest of the way to register the thrilling upset.
The Knights were the more efficient team shooting the basketball on the evening, as Berkeley connected on 41.3 percent of its attempts from the floor (26-63), while the Bobcats converted on just 19 of 55 attempts (34.5 percent). The teams combined for a whopping 90 free throw attempts on the night, with Bryant & Stratton-Syracuse shooting slightly better, as the Bobcats nailed 60.5 percent of its freebees (26-43), while the Knights connected on 28 of 47 attempts (59.6 percent). Berkeley held a 44-41 edge on the glass, while also winning the turnover battle, committing just 14 miscues, while the Bobcats committed 20.
The Knights will now advance to take on No. 4-seeded Apprentice on Thursday evening at 5:30pm at the Burt Flickinger Center in Buffalo, NY, with a spot in the tournament's championship game on the line.
