ROCKVILLE CENTRE, N.Y.- Senior
Dawan Lighty (Paterson, NJ) drained a buzzer beater as part of a furious second half comeback as the Caldwell University men's basketball defeated Molloy College in dramatic fashion 66-64 in a non-conference tilt.
With the victory, the Cougars even their record to 2-2 on the season, while the Lions drop to 0-4.
Molloy took control early in the contest as they raced out to a 20-2 lead at the 13:37 mark of the first half. The Cougars rallied late in the half with a 20-7 run to close to gap to six points at 32-26 with 1:26 on the clock. The Lions scored a five points in the final 77 seconds as they led 37-28 at halftime.
The Lions pushed the lead to as much as 11 points early in the second half and held an eight point lead at 49-41 with 14:53 left in the game. Caldwell rallied with a 12-0 run as they used a balance offensive attack to flip the score in their favor. The Cougars pulled ahead by four points at 53-49 with 7:49 remaining in the game.
Molloy chipped away as they rallied with as 13-4 burst to retake the lead and go ahead by five points at 62-57 with 3:44 remaining in the contest. The Cougars made their move down the stretch that started with a three-point play by senior
Brian Kenny (Howell, NJ) to close the gap to three points with 3:17 on the clock.
Senior
Billy McDonald (North Haven, CT) knocked down a free throw a minute later and senior
Salvatore Vitello (Bridgewater, NJ) connected on a triple to put Caldwell in the lead by two points with 1:33 left in the game. The Lions pulled even with 14 seconds left to set up Lighty to play beat at buzzer and lift the Cougars to a thrilling victory.
For the Cougars, Lighty led the way with 14 points, while Vitello chipped in 13 points. Kenny totaled nine points and nine rebounds, while McDonald posted seven points and six boards. Freshman
Ahmad Harrison (Newark, NJ) tallied seven points, five rebounds, four assists and a pair of steals.
The Cougars open Central Atlantic Collegiate Conference play as they host Concordia College on Tuesday, November 24 at 8 pm.
