Photo by Curtis Ashley / Beaver Beat
By Curtis AshleySports WriterMomentum. Confidence. A win. Three things the City College Men's basketball team needed after Saturday's game, and they got them. Like most of their games this season, the match-up between CCNY and Mariners of USMMA came down to the wire, and this time CCNY came out on top, with a final score of 77-72.It was the final home game of the season for the Beavers. The team finishes the season having split their home games, going 7-7 when on their hardwood. In addition, it was also Senior night, or afternoon. Blake Borysewicz, the only senior on the team, was honored before the game."I've been here for a semester and a half, but I definitely have a lot of memories here. It's very important for me to come out and try to close this last home game with a 'W'," Borysewicz said after the game.He finished the game with five points, four rebounds, and one assist. Mark Richards had the game-high 22 points, along with four rebounds and two assists. Khalil Hamer had 19 points, six rebounds, and four assists. The team as a whole shot .481 from the field, not their worst performance of the season.CCNY started the game playing catch-up, after USMMA started the game with a 7-0 run. With just over five minutes remaining in the first half, City took the lead off of a couple of free throws by Hamer. They were able to retain the lead for the rest of the half, heading into the locker room up 38-31. After the break, it was all CCNY. USMMA briefly tied the game at 62, but CCNY immediately responded with a 12-4 run, while also winding the clock down to a minute. The Mariners began to foul intentionally, hoping that they could find a way back in the game, but Hamer and Borysewicz were able to hit a few from the foul line to keep City ahead for the remainder of the game."Coming off a losing streak, it's a definitely a big win, just to set the tone for us. We got all conference games all the way going into the CUNY playoffs," Richards said in a post-game interview.The team snaps a two-game losing streak with the win. Their overall record improves to 12-10, while remaining at 6-7 in the conference. As mentioned before, there are only three games remaining in the season. All of them against conference opponents. All of them on the road. All of them more important than the last. The guys will start the season ending road trip on Tuesday when they face the Baruch College Bearcats. Earlier this season, the guys lost to Baruch 79-88. The last time they played Baruch on their court, they also lost. In fact, the last time they defeated Baruch was in the '06-'07 season, when they won 62-59 in Baruch's ARC Arena. It's been a while, but when's a better time to turn the tables on a rivalry that's been one-sided far too long. For the Beavers, that time is now.