Brooklyn College got out to an early lead and never looked back, scoring a lop-sided, 83-63, win over the College of Staten Island as part of men’s basketball CUNYAC action tonight in Brooklyn, NY. CSI saw their season-long seven-game win streak snapped, as they fell to 14-6 overall and 8-3 in the CUNYAC, while the Bulldogs advanced to 17-4, 9-3, respectively.
After scoring the game’s first points on a Will Fonseca basket, CSI found themselves in a hole early, as BC proceeded to race out on an 11-2 run to take a sizable first half lead, powered by two Egzon Gjonbalaj buckets. A Steven Diaz three gave BC a double digit lead, 20-10, midway through the first half and BC kept CSI at bay from there. Consecutive buckets from Thomas Delahanty and Fonseca drew CSI closest at 26-23 with 3:24 to go in the first frame, but an immediate 6-0 BC run got the Bulldogs in the comfort zone again, and the home squad boasted a 34-26 halftime edge.
Things got worse to start the second half, as BC raced out to an 8-2 run to start, running their lead to 41-28. A reeling CSI had room for a modest comeback, erasing a 13-point lead to cut it to 56-49 with 8:41 to go on a Frank Schettino three, but in a recurring theme of the night, BC had a great response, this time using a 17-1 run that slammed the door on the Dolphins, giving BC a 76-50 edge that was hardly contested the rest of the way.
CSI shot just 37.9% in the game, their second-lowest output of the season, and the team was a chilly 8-18 from the free-throw line. For the second game in a row, CSI also turned the ball over 19 times. BC shot 45.5%, and held a modest 44-41 edge on the glass. CSI was led by Fonseca’s 22 points and 11 rebounds, while Schettino chimed in with 18 points and six assists. Lorenzo Williams led all Brooklyn scorers with 17 points with Jai Kellman added 15.
CSI is next in action on Tuesday, February 3, hosting CCNY at 7:30pm at the Sports & Recreation Center.