JAMAICA, NY --- (www.YORKATHLETICS.com) York College men's basketball squared off against the United States Merchant Marine Academy Mariners (3-5) on Monday night, controlling the second half on its way to an 83-70 non-conference victory inside York College Gymnasium.

"It's always good to get a win, but to close out our last home game of the semester was a win was huge for our confidence."-said head coach Jamel Gist

How it Happened

• USMMA went up 12-6 after Kody Robinson's three at the 16:34 mark.
• York responded with a mini 5-0 burst to cut the lead to one (12-11).
• The Mariners extended their lead to 11 (24-13) after Robinson's triple with 12:16 remaining. 
• York answered with a 23-7 run over a span of 10:37 as William Brown netted eight points to spark York to a 36-31 advantage with 1:39 left in the half.
• Matthew Smiley's layup with one second remaining ended the first-half scoring with the Cardinals leading 38-35.
• Matthew Trepeta drained a three with 16:48 showing on the clock put York up by 12 (52-40) to cap off a 14-5 run to begin the second frame.
• USMMA then scored eight of the next 11 points to cut the deficit to seven (55-48).
• Brown sank a triple with 8:22 remaining to extend York's lead to 13 (66-53).
• The Mariners pulled within seven two more times, with those scores being 68-61 and 70-63.
• York outscored USMMAby three (13-10) to close out the game as Mert Zor's 3-pointer at 1:20 pushed the Cardinals' lead to a game-high 15 (83-68).

Inside the Box Score

Olawale Kila continued his productive play by scoring a career-high 23 points (9-of-14 FG, 5-of-7 FT) to pace York to victory. The forward also blocked two shots and had a career-high and game-best four steals. Coach Gist praised Kila after the game:

"Olawale was tremendous on both sides of the basketball. His amazing defense turned into easy offense for us. He is really starting to get comfortable and get his feet wet and it will only grow from here."

Along with Kila, Smiley dropped an efficient 17 points (8-of-13 FG), blocked two shots, and led the team with seven boards. His 17 points was a career-best performance as a Cardinal. Trepeta scored 15 points (4-of-6 FG, 3-of-4 3FG), hauled in six rebounds, dished out five dimes, and had two steals. Brown added a cool 11 points (3-of-5 3FG) and five rebounds off the bench. Devine Chisholm matched Trepeta's total of five assists.

Isaac Vencel, Robinson, and Drew Zalescik all reached double-digits in points for the Mariners. Vencel paced USMMA with 21 points (9-of-14 FG, 3-of-5 3FG) and a team-high five assists. Robinson connected on six of his nine attempts beyond the arc on his way to 19 points. Zalescik dropped 12 points (6-of-9 FG) and recorded a team-best three steals. Bryce Baristow ripped down a game-high 10 boards. 

York shot a season-best 52.5 percent (31-of-59) from the field and 47.4 percent (9-of-19) from downtown. Meanwhile, the Mariners connected on 45.9 percent (28-of-61) of their field goals and 38.5 percent (10-of-26) from beyond the arc. At the charity stripe, the Cardinals converted eight more free throws (12-4). 

As USMMA held a slight advantage on the glass (34-31), York outplayed the Mariners in assists (18-9), steals (8-6), and blocks (4-1). Additionally, the Cardinals had the edge in fast-break points (18-6), points off turnovers (18-8), and points in the paint (36-32).

Up Next 
The Cardinals (2-9) complete their non-conference slate Saturday (Dec. 17) as they travel to Madison, New Jersey to face the Drew University Rangers (6-4) at 2 p.m. from Baldwin Gym.

For the latest news on the Cardinals, log on to www.yorkathletics.com – the official site of York College athletics. Also, become a follower of the Cardinals on Instagram (@yorkcardinals), Twitter (@yorkcardinals) and YouTube (@yorkathletics), and "LIKE" Us on Facebook (York Athletics).