New York, NY – A second half struggle erased a solid first 20 minutes as the Hawks let a six point halftime lead slip over the final minutes of the game against CCNY on Friday. Despite having nine players contribute to the scoring, the Purple and Gold were unable to stay ahead and hold on to the lead as they continue to search for their first win, falling 72-66. The loss drops them to 0-9 overall, 0-3 in CUNYAC play.
Senior guard,
Brian Kruger, led the offense for the Hawks with a 22 point performance on 7-15 shooting which included six three-pointers (6-11 from behind the arc). He was one of nine players to score at least two points.
Gerard Carty and
Amer Lukac each chipped in with nine points while
Robert Borusiewicz grabbed 11 rebounds.
The Purple and Gold got off to a good start after Kruger knocked down a trey right from the tip off. In a half that featured five lead changes and four score ties, both teams played each other evenly, knocking down a difference of one shot from the field and the three point line. Hunter sank five three pointers and was 5-10 from the charity stripe meanwhile CCNY put in four from behind the arc and went 2-4 from the free throw line. The see-saw affair became one-sided at the 3:08 mark when Carty's free throw gave hunter a three-point lead and a spark that saw Hunter go on a 7-3 run to close out the half, putting them up by six at 38-32.
In the second, the lead quickly dwindled down but Hunter managed to build it up once again to six by the halfway mark. Back-to-back free throws by CCNY's Robert Dionisio gave the Beavers their first lead since 6:03 in the first. With four minutes left to play, the hosts held a one point lead and grew it to five. Once again, Kruger came through with a clutch triple to bring them within a bucket's range.
However, a Carty free throw with 33 seconds left to play was one of the final two points the Hawks were able to muster as CCNY went on to drain five from the foul line, ultimately closing the curtains on the Purple and Gold, 71-65.
The team returns to action on Wednesday, December 30 when they take on the United States Merchant Marine Academy in Kings Point, NY at 2pm.
