City Struggles In Second Half, Falls Short To St. Joseph's

BY Curtis AshleySports WriterAfter a brief two-week break early in the season, the City College Men's Basketball team got back out hardwood Tuesday afternoon, when they faced the Bears of St. Joseph's College (BK). Unfortunately for the guys, they couldn't get the win, losing to the Bears 65-60.With this loss, the Beavers are now 5-4 overall, remaining 2-2 in the conference. They also fall below .500 at home after the loss in the Nat Holman Gymnasium.The game started slow, neither team able to get an edge on the other. The game was tied six different times, along with three lead changes, in the first half. The largest separation came with less than two minutes to go in the half, when City got the lead to six, after a couple of free throws by Khalil Hamer, the team's only foul shots of the half. The Beavers would hold on to the lead to finish out the half, with a score of 29-24.In the beginning of the second half, City looked to keep the momentum going. They held onto the lead for nearly 10-minutes, until St. Joseph's tied the game at 43 off a pair of threes. The Bears would go on to take the lead, and held on for the remainder of the game. They would host a six-point lead as well, with CCNY chipping away at it here and there, but to no avail. City's last opportunity came with 16 seconds remaining on the clock, when they were down by one point, off a fastbreak score by Hamer. But their defense couldn't get the stop they needed to keep themselves in the match.Darius Rhodes had a double-double, with 16 points and 13 rebounds. Robert Dionisio scored double-digit figures as well. He had 10, with 7 boards and 3 assists. The team as a whole only shot .393 from the field. Their shot from the foul-line was there that afternoon though, going 9-for-14. Rhodes led in that category as well, with six made foul shots.The game against St. Joseph's was only the third of five straight at home for the Beavers. Their next game is Wednesday, December 30th, at 1 p.m. City will face Manhattanville College, in what will be their final game of the calendar year. The guys look to warm-up, after a slow, cold return to basketball.