Box Score
Three players scored in double figures for the Cougars (16-11), which will seek their first title since 1991 and compete in their first finals since 2002 – when they fell to Staten Island. CUNYAC/Con Edison All-Star Jovan Deare tallied 18 points and eight rebounds, while Winston Douglas chipped in with 14 points, nine rebounds, three blocks and three steals. James Gilmore added 11 points and four assists for Medgar Evers. The second seed utilized a 21-9 advantage in points off turnovers to help the winning cause – including a 16-4 edge in the second half.
Hunter (13-14) was led by a 12-point effort from Mark Courtien, while Joel Cerda shot 5-for-9 from the floor en route to 11 points. Izzy Hoffman scored eight points and four assists for the Hawks, who shot 40 percent from the field (20-for-50), but were victimized by 21 turnovers against a pressure defense from Medgar Evers.
The Hawks' 19-16 halftime lead slowly grew to a 10-point margin (34-24) with 11:18 to go on a layup by Cerda. However, Douglas later converted a two-handed dunk on the break with 8:49 remaining, starting a 9-0 run that knotted the game at 36-all with 6:47 left after four straight points by Deare.
"I think we finally got the nervousness out of our system with seven minutes left in the game," said Medgar Evers head coach Chris Pursoo. "We were nervous and tense the entire game, but Hunter eventually came out of their 2-3 zone and had trouble matching up man-to-man with us. And that, combined with our full-court press, allowed us to make strides and settle down. We had fresher legs in the last five minutes of the game - thankfully."
The lead flip-flopped on three occasions thereafter, with the Cougars taking control behind a 9-0 spurt en route to a 50-43 edge with 1:36 remaining that they would never relinquish.
Hunter came out strong defensively, taking a 9-0 advantage and not allowing a hoop by Medgar Evers until the 12:26 mark. The Hawks' lead hovered between three and seven points for most of the rest of the half, until an 8-1 run by the Cougars tied the game at 16-all when Douglas made his third hoop of the stretch with just under one minute remaining. Jeffrey Daza knocked down a trifecta with 30 seconds left to send Hunter into the locker room up by three.
"Hunter is a very long team," explained Pursoo. "They give us problems with their height and length; that's why they beat us during the regular season."
"It has been a turnaround for the whole program this season," said Deare. "We worked hard in the spring, in the summer and in the fall. We have been working towards getting to this point. It feels good getting to the final, but we want more."
~Courtesy of Tom Emberly, CUNY Athletic Conference
