BRONX, N.Y.—After a closely-contested first half, Lehman College caught fire in the second and pulled away to defeat the York College men's basketball team, 86-71, on Wednesday night.
 
Lehman shot 63 percent from the field and 43 percent from three-point range to turn a close game in the first half into a double-digit advantage in the second.  The Lightning had five players score in double figures, led by Jean Marcial and Luis Hernandez, who each had 16 points. Marcial also shot 70 percent from the field (7-for-10).
 
York got 20 points from Edwin Sainvil and a season-high 19 points on 6-of-8 shooting from Jean Joseph. Ryan Smart chipped in a double-double with 15 points and 14 rebounds, to go along with four steals.
 
The two teams kept it close for most of the first half.  Lehman led for most of the half, but a Sainvil lay-up on a fast break with 1:23 to go cut the deficit to 32-31.  However, Lehman closed the half strong, scoring the final five points to go up by six at the break.
 
In the second half, Lehman came out of the gates fast with a three-pointer from Andrew Utate to go up by nine. That would set the tone for the rest of the second half, as Lehman would continue to drain shots and extend its lead to as much as 17 points in the game. York briefly closed back to within single digits, but Lehman pulled away again and the Cardinals never threatened again.
 
The loss drops York's record to 2-17, 2-9 CUNYAC, while Lehman improves to 11-8, 7-4 CUNYAC.  York will be on the road on Saturday to take on the College of Staten Island at 1 p.m.